The math goes all wrong for fuel retailers despite sustained oil price hike

Demand destruction led by Covid-19 and the EV push, cutback in retail prices could end up making the business of running fuel stations unviable

This week dealers of petrol and diesel went on a day’s strike in Gurugram, bringing home to New Delhi their concerns. It might seem crazy that even as oil prices touch dizzy heights, the margins of retail sellers should take a hit. Yet it has happened. It is also part of a larger trend in the year 2022, when it is not certain that shooting commodity prices will necessarily mean more profits for all categories of sellers. The choice of Haryana to stage the token strike was significant, as data shows it accounts for 12 per