India's July fuel demand up 1.9% year on year

India's fuel consumption, a proxy for oil demand, rose by 1.9% year-on-year in July to about 18.09 million tonnes, data from the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) of the oil ministry showed on Tuesday.

Fuel demand was still down about 6.6% from the previous month, when demand stood at 19.36 million tonnes.

There is a seasonality in Indian demand, which normally peaks in March and declines during the summer period due to the monsoon, said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.


Fuel demand in India, the world's third-biggest oil importer and consumer, typically falls during the four-month monsoon season beginning in June as parts of the country are affected by heavy floods.

Sales of gasoline fell 5.3% to 2.99 million tonnes and sales of diesel decreased around 13% to 6.89 million tonnes in July from the previous month, the data showed.