February 4, 2019 (MLN): The domestic sales of petroleum products declined by 13% YoY in January, whereas compared to last month, the sales have increased by 8% as the quantity sold stands at 1.56 million tons.
This brings the cumulative sales figures for the first seven months of FY19 to a decline of 30% YoY as the volumes dropped from 15.3 million tons to 10.7 million tons.
According to market sources, the fall in sales during the month is mainly a result of the 24% YoY decline in High-speed diesel (HSD) volume, which completely offset the increase in sales of motor spirit (MS).
The major reasons that weighed down HSD volumes are; drop in demand from HSD power generation, expected smuggling of Iranian diesel after US sanctions and economic slowdown that impacted agriculture and construction.
On the other hand, due to CNG load shedding, MS sales increased by a slight 2% YoY and 1% MoM, logging in at 0.61 million tons.
On the other hand, Furnace oil sales dropped by 9% YoY last month, whereas cumulatively for the seven months, the sales plunged by 61% YoY.
Nonetheless, compared to prior month, the sales volumes surged by 60% mainly reflecting the substitution effect in electricity generation, from hydel to furnace oil based plants.
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