In March, the sale of petrol and diesel reached at 0.57m tonnes and 0.46m tonnes. It showed 5pc and 4pc rise month on month and 3pc and 17pc growth year on year.

Furnace oil (FO) sales plunged by 11pc in March to 0.04m tonnes from 0.05m tonnes in February. However, March sales were 48pc lower than 0.09m tonnes in the same month last year.

In 9MFY24, petrol and diesel sales shrank by 5pc each to 5.30m tonnes and 4.58m tonnes from 5.59m and 4.82m tonnes in the same period last year.

A steep fall of 53pc was registered in FO sales to 0.84m tonnes from 1.79m tonnes during 9MFY23.

As March auto sales data will arrive by the second week of this month, auto sales play a crucial role in oil output. Cars, jeeps, vans and pickups sales remained 41pc thin to 59,699 in 8MFY24 from 101,426 units in the same period last fiscal. Trucks, buses and two-wheelers sales also showed negative sales growth of 50pc, 43pc and 13pc, respectively.