Jefferies said the market tightness is expected to increase as China’s National Development and Reform Commission has asked the country’s oil companies to suspend exports of gasoline and diesel in April.
The global supply problem opens up export opportunities for Indian refineries, for whom diesel accounts for 40-50% of the product supply.
India’s petroleum exports totaled 5,067 thousand metric tons in January, compared to the past two-year monthly average of 4,934 TMT, data from the Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell shows. Total exports of oil products and diesel increased by 9.8% and 4.8% respectively from the previous year to 51,109 TMT and 26,621 TMT in the period April 2021 to January 2022.
Indian refinery capacity utilization has increased from 101.23% in December to 102.56% in January 2022, according to oil ministry data.
Domestic demand for petroleum products has also grown. Total consumption rose 5.4% year-on-year to 17,574 TMT in February. It increased by 4.3% from April 2021 to February 2022. Petrol and diesel consumption rose by 10.8% and 5.3% respectively in the 11 months of this financial year compared to a year earlier.
This post Indian oil, BPCL and HPCL could be cushioned by refining margin and inventory gains in the fourth quarter
was original published at “https://www.bloombergquint.com/business/indian-oil-bpcl-hpcl-may-be-cushioned-by-refining-margin-inventory-gains-in-q4”
