Feb 9 (Reuters) - India's fuel consumption fell to 21.05 million metric tons in January from 21.71 million the previous month, which was the highest monthly number recorded in oil ministry data, but gained nearly 3% compared with the same period last year.
WHY IT'S IMPORTANT
India is the world's third-largest consumer and importer of oil and the largest buyer of Russian seaborne crude, taking advantage of discounts on Russian oil as Europe and the U.S. shun those barrels over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
BY THE NUMBERS
Data released by the oil ministry's Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) on Monday showed sales of gasoline stood at 3.51 million metric tons in January, down 1.2% from December but up 6.1% from a year earlier.
Diesel consumption was at nearly 8 million tons, up 3.3% from a year earlier but down 5.7% month-on-month, while liquefied petroleum gas consumption rose 6.6% from a year earlier to 3.03 million tons.
Naphtha sales fell about 10.2% year-on-year to 1.02 million tons, while consumption of bitumen, used primarily in road construction, fell 12.9% from December and but was up 4.2% on an annual basis at 0.79 million tons.
Fuel oil usage stood at 0.57 million tons, rising 3.3% from a year earlier.
CONTEXT
India's state refiners Indian Oil and Hindustan Petroleum together bought 2 million barrels of Merey crude from Venezuela for delivery in the second half of April, two trade sources aware of the deal said.
The purchase highlights Indian refiners' effort to diversify their imports to partly replace Russian oil, which they are avoiding to help New Delhi seal a trade deal with the United States.
Meanwhile, high-frequency indicators point to sustained growth momentum, according to the Reserve Bank of India's State of the Economy report released on January 21.
A rare combination of rising fuel demand and expanding refining capacity is drawing global commodity traders to India, with firms such as Trafigura seeking long-term partnerships with state oil companies.
KEY COMMENTS
"Another month with solid year-on-year growth, driven by the key refined products diesel and gasoline," said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
"Indian demand growth is likely to be a key driver of global oil demand growth this year."
DOMESTIC SALES (in millions of metric tons):
|
2026 |
2025 |
2025 |
2025 |
2024 |
2024 |
|
|
January |
December |
November |
January |
December |
November |
|
|
Diesel |
7.99 |
8.47 |
8.56 |
7.74 |
8.05 |
8.17 |
|
Petrol |
3.51 |
3.56 |
3.52 |
3.31 |
3.32 |
3.43 |
|
LPG |
3.03 |
3.08 |
2.84 |
2.84 |
2.77 |
2.67 |
|
Naphtha |
1.02 |
1.00 |
0.92 |
1.14 |
1.01 |
1.10 |
|
Jet fuel |
0.83 |
0.78 |
0.79 |
0.78 |
0.78 |
0.75 |
|
Kerosene |
0.04 |
0.04 |
0.04 |
0.04 |
0.04 |
0.04 |
|
Fuel Oil |
0.57 |
0.57 |
0.55 |
0.55 |
0.56 |
0.50 |
|
Bitumen |
0.80 |
0.92 |
0.88 |
0.77 |
0.77 |
0.71 |
|
TOTAL |
21.05 |
21.71 |
20.78 |
20.47 |
20.66 |
20.66 |
Reporting by Pablo Sinha and Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru; Editing by David Holmes
Source: Reuters