Diesel prices are at an all-time high. Over the financial years 2010-2018, there is only one instance when diesel consumption declined and that was in fiscal 2014 when it declined 1% year-on-year. In India, the transport sector is a major contributor to diesel demand and FY14 was particularly disappointing on this count. Cut to now, FY18 diesel consumption growth (based on provisional figures) of 6.6% coming after a 1.8% growth in FY17, isn’t too bad. “Major consuming sectors such as commercial vehicles are doing well and that means even if diesel consumption growth rate comes down owing to higher prices, growth is unlikely to be negative,” reckons Bhatia.

Source: Mint April 24, 2018 03:11 UTC