Since March this year, India’s consumption of diesel, petrol and jet fuel has been near record levels, with May 2025 hitting an all-time-high record.
Festival season demand, coupled with GST rate cuts, helped lift diesel consumption to a four-month high during October 2025. Petrol usage rose to a five-month high as sales of personal vehicles surged to its highest in the year.
The consumption of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) last month also rose to its highest in five months.
According to the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC), India’s diesel consumption rose by 12 per cent month-on-month (m-o-m) to 7.6 million tonnes (mt) on a provisional basis. However, the usage on an annual basis was lower, albeit marginally.
While the usage of petrol rose by more than 7 per cent m-o-m and 7 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to 3.45 mt during October 2025, the consumption of jet fuel was up by 7 per cent m-o-m and over 1.5 per cent y-o-y at 769,000 tonnes.
Since March this year, India’s consumption of diesel, petrol and jet fuel has been near record levels, with May 2025 hitting an all-time-high record. However, usage fell for three consecutive months during June to August 2025 as monsoon rains impacted mobility.
Industry sources said that the rationalisation of GST rates by the government with the intention to boost spending during the October-December festival and marriage season boosted stocking which reflected in the higher diesel usage.
Demand is also rising from the farm sector as the country prepares for the Rabi season. Besides, mining activity resumes from October, which also pushes up sales, said one of the sources.
The rise in petrol consumption is in line with the expanding base of personal vehicles, which got a further boost last month with the GST rationalisation exercise.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) in a June 2025 report projected that India’s expected 1 million barrels per day (mb/d) increase in oil demand growth is the largest for any single country over 2024-2030, which will be led by petrol and jet fuel.
An expanding middle class, coupled with growing affluence, is pushing up consumption of petrol and jet fuel, the two commodities in the auto fuel segment, which will help the top crude oil importer lead global oil demand growth.
The demand for the two auto fuels, which points to the evolving dynamics in the personal mobility and aspirational air travel segments, is aided by an expanding economy and commercial base, besides rising household energy consumption.
In relative terms, jet/ kerosene will rise the fastest, at almost 6 per cent annually. The fuel, starting from a low base, stands to benefit the most from population growth of 5 per cent between 2025 and 2030 and its rapidly expanding middle class keen to spend on luxury goods and services, including foreign travel, it added.
A similar dynamic propels annual gasoline demand growth of 4 per cent, which has significant scope for expansion given low levels of car ownership.
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Published on November 2, 2025