India hopes its fuel demand would recover topre-pandemiclevelsby the end of this year.Indian state fuel retailers' petrolsalesexceededpre-pandemiclevelsin the first fortnight of July, as motorists took back to the roads after states eased COVID-19-related lockdowns.Salesof petrolrose to 1.03 million tonnes in the first fortnight of July, ajumpof about 3.44 per centover the corresponding 2019 period,preliminary industrydatashowed on Friday.India's petrolsalesrecovered topre-pandemiclevelsin October 2020 before a second deadly wave of infections began hitting the fuel's demand in April.Rising fuelsalesin India, the world's third-biggest oil importer and consumer, is a positive development for global oil markets.The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries said on Thursday it expects world oil demand to increase next year to aroundlevelsseen before thepandemic, led by demand growth in the United States , China and India.With easing of restrictions by the states after a decline in infections, motorists flocked to tourist destinations and markets, leading Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to warn against overcrowding.This week home ministry asked officials nationwide to enforce social distancing and clamp down on overcrowding at tourist sites.Diesel sales, which accounts for about two-fifths ofIndia's overall refined fuel consumption and is directly linked to industrial activity in Asia's third-largest economy, was about 10.7 per centless than the same period of 2019, thedatashowed.India hopes its fuel demand would recover topre-pandemiclevelsby the end of this year.
State-run Indian Oil Corp, Hindustan Petroleum Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd own about 90 per centof the country's retail fuel outlets.