DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday that energy markets could be tighter in 2023, adding he hoped prices would not rise further in order to protect energy-importing developing countries facing gloomy economic outlooks.

"I wouldn't be too relaxed about the markets and 2023 may well be a year where we see tighter markets than some colleagues may think," IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in an interview with the Reuters Global Markets Forum in Davos.

For daily Davos updates in your inbox sign up for the Reuters Daily Briefing here. (Editing by Alexander Smith)