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The country’s consumption of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) rose to its second highest level on record during October 2024 aided by rising domestic and international traffic as well as airlines adding more aircraft and destinations. Diwali falling on the last day of the month also boosted footfalls.
According to the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC), India’s consumption of jet fuel rose by almost 9 per cent Y-o-Y and 4 per cent M-o-M to 751,000 tonnes on a provisional basis.
Jet fuel consumption last month is also the highest in the current financial year so far. India had clocked ATF consumption of 758,000 tonnes in March 2024, which is a record.
Sources said that air travel in India is expected to continue to appreciate aided by rising disposable incomes and airlines adding more carriers and destinations to meet rising demand.
Higher air travel
Besides, October historically also witnesses higher air travel. The last week of October witnessed higher footfalls as people travelled for Diwali, which was celebrated on Thursday.
For instance, the cumulative domestic traffic on October 31, 2024 stood at more than 7.38 lakh passengers with total flights at 6,285. In the case of international traffic, the total passenger traffic stood at around 1.96 lakh passengers with total flights at 2,182.
According to India Ratings & Research (Ind-Ra), domestic air traffic hit a record 154 million in FY24 and the rally is expected to continue in FY25. ATF consumption during FY24 increased to 8.3 MT surpassing the previous high of 8.2 MT consumed in FY19.
October 2024 domestic and international passenger traffic data is yet to be released.
Passengers carried by domestic airlines during January–September 2024 rose by almost 5 per cent Y-o-Y to 1184.93 lakhs.
According to Crisil Ratings, an increase in inbound travel (i.e., foreign tourist arrivals) to pre-pandemic levels and high demand from the corporate and MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) segments are also supporting domestic travel.
Diesel consumption up
October also witnessed a healthy 20 per cent M-o-M growth in consumption of diesel, the mainstay of India’s transport and logistics sectors, to 7.64 million tonnes (mt). On an annual basis, the growth was marginal at 0.8 per cent.
October-December generally witnesses higher consumption of auto fuels, particularly diesel, as FMCG and FMCD companies stock up for the festival season. Some amount of diesel is also consumed by the farm sector as sowing for rabi season commences.
The uptick in diesel usage last month comes after the consumption fell during August and September this year. In fact, the decline in September was the highest in 2 years.
Consumption of petrol, largely used in the personal vehicle category, also rose by roughly 8 per cent on a monthly and yearly basis in October 2024 to 3.40 mt.
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