India's fuel consumption surges 8.2% YoY in January

In January, India experienced an 8.2% year-on-year increase in fuel consumption, according to government data released. This surge was attributed to robust industrial activity in the country, which is the world's third-largest oil consumer. The Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) of the oil ministry reported that total consumption, serving as a proxy for oil demand, reached 20.04 million tonnes in January, up from 18.51 million tonnes the previous year. Despite this annual growth, there was a marginal 0.1% decline in consumption on a month-on-month basis, following a peak in December at 20.05 million tonnes. Diesel sales, primarily utilised by trucks and commercially-run passenger vehicles, increased by 3.5% year-on-year to 7.43 million tons in January. The manufacturing industry in India demonstrated significant improvement at the beginning of 2024, with factory activity expanding at its fastest rate in four months during January. This expansion was attributed to robust demand and a positive outlook for the year ahead, as revealed by a private survey. Gasoline sales in January saw a 9.6% year-on-year rise to 3.10 million tons. Indian carmakers reported record sales for the month, aiming to build up inventory for new and refreshed models throughout the calendar year, according to wholesale data from the companies. Sales of bitumen, used in road construction, increased by 11.6% compared to the previous January, while fuel oil usage decreased by 4.7% year-on-year. Additionally, cooking gas (liquefied petroleum gas) sales rose by 7.6% to 2.70 million tons, and naphtha sales surged by 15.2% to around 1.30 million tons compared to the same period last year, according to the provided data.