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With the time, it seems that the country’s political intelligentsia is unable to set things right in term of prevailing economic chaos and its effects on a business and middle-class men. In a recent update, following others, petroleum sales charts have also started shattering.

Petroleum Sales

According to a report by Arif Habib Limited, Petroleum sales (petrol and diesel) have witnessed a significant decline in the past year. The total sales volume for the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) was 15.28 million tons, which is an 8% decrease compared to the previous year. This is the lowest level recorded in 18 years!

There was a slight improvement in June 2024, with sales going up by 8% year-on-year (YoY) and 4% compared to the previous month (MoM) to 1.45 million tons. However, this couldn’t make up for the overall decline throughout the year.

Looking at individual products, sales of motor spirit (petrol) increased by 9% YoY in June 2024, reaching 0.70 million tons. Similarly, sales of high-speed diesel (HSD) also saw a rise of 5% YoY to 0.57 million tons. Furnace oil (FO) sales also went up by 6% YoY, reaching 0.11 million tons.

Coming to how oil companies performed in terms of sales, PSO remained stable YoY in June 2024 at 0.65 million tons. The company’s market share dipped slightly to 49.4% in FY24 from 50.0% in FY23. Meanwhile, Attock Petroleum Limited (APL) and HASCOL witnessed significant drops in sales and market share.

Reasons for the Decline

On a month-to-month basis (MoM), there was a 4% increase in sales in June 2024. This can be attributed to lower prices for petrol and diesel, along with a rise in demand for FO for power generation.

The report doesn’t mention specific reasons for the overall decline. However, it simply reveals the current state of our industrial sector (consuming a significant part of petroleum products) in conjunction with purchasing power of a common man moving from his own car to a two-wheeler or vehicle.

What do you think about the report informing a stark down in the sales of petroleum products. Tell us in the comments section.