Indian state fuel retailers’ diesel sales in December declined from the previous month as a cold wave in parts of the country curtailed the movement of gasoil guzzling trucks, preliminary sales data showed.

Fuel demand in India, which is a proxy for oil demand in Asia’s third-largest economy, typically slows in winters as Indians mostly refrain from using diesel for heating, unlike the West.

State-refiners’ average daily gasoil sales in December declined 3.7% month-on-month, but were 13% higher from a year earlier, the data showed. Gasoil accounts for about two-fifths of India’s overall fuel demand.

Indian fuel demand had surged in November due to the festive season amid higher personal mobility.

State retailers’ daily gasoline sales in December increased 0.3% from the previous month and 8.6% from last year, the data showed.

State retailers Indian Oil Corp IOC.NS, Hindustan Petroleum Corp HPCL.NS and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd BPCL.NS own about 90% of the country’s retail fuel outlets.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Nidhi Verma Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)