The coronavirus pandemic has dealt a twin blow to India’s oil refiners with a ₹25,000 crore inventory loss in the March quarter, and a likely plunge in the June quarter refining margins due to demand destruction, Crisil Ratings said.
Crude prices nosedived from an average $55 per barrel in February to $33 in March, and closed at around $20 by March-end, as lockdowns across the world sapped fuel demand.
A 12 April decision by The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) to cut crude by a record 9.7 million barrels a day has failed to lift prices as the pandemic has depressed demand across the globe.
