Petrol, diesel sales surge in first half of July

Petrol and diesel sales by India’s three state-run fuel retailers rose sharply in the first half of July, helped by below-normal monsoon rainfall that boosted fuel demand from farmers and motorists, preliminary sales data showed on Thursday.

Petrol sales by Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) climbed 22.9 per cent to 1.63 million tonnes during July 1-15, compared with 1.33 million tonnes in the corresponding period a year earlier.

The volume was also 26.7 per cent higher than 1.29 million tonnes sold during the first half of July 2024 and 38.6 per cent above the level recorded in the same period of 2023. Compared with the first half of June, however, petrol sales fell 4.4 per cent from 1.71 million tonnes.

Diesel sales, a key indicator of economic activity in India, rose 20.9 per cent year-on-year to 3.46 million tonnes in the first fortnight of July from 2.87 million tonnes a year earlier.

The volume was 18.4 per cent higher than in the corresponding period of 2024 and 13.9 per cent above the first half of July 2023. On a month-on-month basis, diesel sales declined 12.1 per cent from 3.94 million tonnes in the first half of June.

Fuel sales typically moderate with the onset of the monsoon, which reduces demand for running agricultural irrigation pumps as well as slows vehicular movement. But this year, the monsoon rains arrived late, which led to farmers using diesel to run pumps to irrigate farms.

Month-on-month, the sales in July is lower because June is typically the time when holiday travel picks up due to school and college holidays.

Jet fuel (ATF) sales inched up marginally by 0.7 per cent to 315,400 tonnes during July 1-15, but were 10.3 per cent lower than 351,400 tonnes sold in the first half of June.

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sales continued to fall, dropping 17.5 per cent to 1.14 million tonnes.

LPG sales have been on a decline since the onset of the West Asia crisis disrupted supplies, leading to the imposition of consumption restriction in certain sectors like hotels and restaurants. The curbs were lifted this month, and sales saw a 1.7 per cent rise over 1.12 million tonnes consumed in the first half of June, the data showed.