India's demand for petrol and diesel fell in the first half of July over the previous month as the onset of monsoon chipped away consumption in some sectors and restricted mobility, preliminary industry data showed on July 17.
Diesel, the most widely used fuel in the country, saw consumption drop 13.7% during July 1-15 to 3.16 million tonnes from 3.67 million tonnes demand in the same period of the previous month.
The arrival and intensity of monsoon weighs heavily on diesel demand in the country and consumption traditionally is lower in July-September than in April-June. Floods restrict mobility and demand from the farm sector, which uses diesel in irrigation pumps and trucking, also drops with the onset of rains.
