Diesel sales slip for 2nd month in row in August

NEW DELHI: India’s diesel consumption continued to slip for the second month in a row in August – though at a slower pace than earlier – as monsoon rains suppressed construction activities and lowered demand from the farm sector, but remained well above the pre-pandemic levels in keeping with the pace of the country’s economic growth.
Petrol sales, however, rebounded to post a growth of almost 6% after recouping a similar monthly drop in July, market data showed on Thursday.
August diesel consumption fell nearly 5% from a month ago. But the sales were 11.6% higher than August 2019 and 23.5% more than the corresponding year-ago period, underlining strong fundamentals.