Briefs

摘要

INDIA - The country’s federal ministry forecasts that India’s refined fuel consumption will expand by 7.3% in the next financial year beginning Apr. 1, its fastest pace since at least 2000. Jet fuel demand is projected to rise at relatively modest rates of just 3.9% to some 136,000 b/d, even as domestic air traffic shows double-digit gains. Airlines are funneling the passenger traffic onto existing flights to boost load factors (JFI Oct.19’15). Overall product consumption in Asia’s third-largest economy is expected to reach 3.82 million b/d in the next financial year, compared with 3.55 million b/d forecast for the current year ending Mar. 31. Ground transport fuels are slated for the fastest rates of growth, with gasoline sales likely to climb by 12.4% to 560,000 b/d and diesel demand up by 7.7% to 1.62 million b/d. The government forecast shows demand for all products gaining ground except for kerosene, which has seen sales decline for the last several years as liquefied petroleum gas made inroads as cooking fuel. India’s GDP is expected to expand by 7.5% in the current financial year and by slightly more next year.