December 04, 2024 (MLN): Pakistan State Oil (PSO), the dominant player in the oil and gas marketing sector saw its market share rise to 50.71% in November, the highest in eight months.
As per the data released by Oil Companies Advisory Council (OCAC), PSO’s sales during the review month clocked in at 799,217 MTs, up by 14.96% MoM, while rising 11.82% compared to the same month last year.
Overall, the industry posted a sales volume of 1.58m MT, hitting a 25-month peak with a growth of 5.54% on a sequential basis and 14.88% compared to last year.
It is important to note that earlier this month, PSO’s market share had remained below the 50% mark since May 2024, as other players, such as GO and HASCOL, experienced a greater proportion of sales growth.
The strong comeback by the giant this month is attributed to strong MO Gas and HSD sales across the industry due to a decline in the prices of petroleum products.
The price of petrol and diesel in the country has been reduced by 12.03% and 14.94%, respectively compared to last year, hence increasing consumption.
Additionally, the government’s crackdown on smuggled fuel products also played its role and helped boost industry sales, especially PSO which holds the majority of the industry’s sales.
Moreover, car sales in the country are also on the rise. In October, the sales of cars, including LCVs, vans, and jeeps, in Pakistan increased by 112.1% in October 2024, clocking in at 13,108 units.
Hence, this increase in OMC sales can also be attributed to rising car sales.
However, PSO’s sales in the ongoing fiscal year (5MFY25) are still down 4.3%, clocking in at 3.12m MT versus 3.26m MT in 5MFY24.
