India’s fuel sales hit 3-year high in March

The country’s fuel demand soared 4.2 per cent to a three-year high in March as petrol and diesel consumption rose above pre-pandemic levels, according to official data released on Monday.

Total petroleum product consumption in March stood at 19.41 million tonnes, the highest since March 2019, data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell of the oil ministry showed.

As the economy continued to rebound from the deep impact of the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, demand for transport fuel rose in March.

Diesel, the most used fuel in the country accounting for almost 40 per cent of all petroleum product consumption, saw the demand rising by 6.7 per cent to 7.7 million tonnes. Petrol sales, which crossed the pre-Covid levels a few months ago, were up 6.1 per cent at 2.91 million tonnes.