- Thursday, April 25, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIA’S fuel consumption went down in November after achieving a seven-month peak in October, data revealed by the government showed on Thursday (9) as demand eased in the country after the festive season.
India is the world’s third-biggest consumer of oil.
Fuel consumption totalled 17.13 million tonnes in the penultimate month of 2021, four per cent less than that in October and 11.4 per cent lower than a year before, data from the Indian oil ministry’s Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell showed, Reuters reported.
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The demand for fuel rose to a seven-month peak in the month before while the sale of gasoline witnessed an all-time high, as the festive season increased mobility and economic activity.
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“Drop-off in demand points to seasonal factors,” Ed Moya, senior market analyst at brokerage OANDA, told Reuters.
“However, fuel demand outlook remains upbeat going into 2022 as COVID is not really impacting the country and good growth outlook on continued reopening momentum,” he added.
India’s festive season concluded in early November with the celebration of Diwali.
The consumption of diesel, which accounts for nearly 40 per cent of India’s refined fuel sales, also went down by 1.7 per cent month-on-month to 6.51 million tonnes and was 14 per cent low compared to November 2019.
Sales of diesel were down 7.6 per cent from the same period in 2020.
The sale of gasoline or petrol also decreased by about 0.7 per cent to 2.65 million tonnes year on year, but was 4.4 per cent more from November 2019. It was down 3.6 per cent compared to that in October.
In November, India, which is Asia’s third-largest economy, said it will release five million barrels of oil from its strategic reserves in coordination with other buyers, including countries like the United States, China, Japan and South Korea.
