Availability of these is fully assured and retail outlets across the country are stocked and supply chains for these products are functioning normally, he said.

Additional allocation of public distribution system (PDS) kerosene has been issued to all the states, he added.

There is no shortage of petrol, diesel, kerosene, aviation turbine fuel or fuel oil, Indian Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said in parliament lower house yesterday.
Availability of these is fully assured and retail outlets across the country are stocked and supply chains for these products are functioning normally.
India’s crude supply position is secure as well, he informed.

India’s crude supply position is secure as well, and volumes secured exceed what the Strait of Hormuz would have delivered, he assured.

Non-Hormuz sourcing has risen to approximately 70 per cent of crude imports, up from 55 per cent before the conflict began. India sources crude from 40 countries.

Refineries in the country are operating at high capacity utilisation; in several cases, they are exceeding 100 per cent, Puri informed.

Natural gas supply has been managed through prioritised allocation, and the position is stable well beyond immediate need. Domestic piped gas to homes and CNG for vehicles receive 100 per cent supply with no cuts. Industrial and manufacturing consumers will receive up to 80 per cent of their previous six-month average.

Fertiliser plants will receive up to 70 per cent, protecting the agricultural input chain ahead of the sowing season.

Refineries and petrochemical units absorb a managed reduction, with that gas redirected to higher-priority sectors, Puri mentioned.

“The shortfall has been substantially offset through alternative procurement. Large LNG cargoes are arriving on an almost daily basis through alternative supply routes, and India has sufficient gas production and supply arrangements to sustain this position even in the event of a prolonged conflict. Power generation for every household and for industry is fully protected,” he was quoted as saying in an official press release.

India was earlier importing nearly three-fifths of its LPG requirements from Gulf countries and produced 40 per cent domestically. Procurement has now been actively diversified, with cargoes being secured from the United States, Norway, Canada, Algeria and Russia, in addition to available Gulf sources, he said.

In the last five days, LPG production has been increased by 28 per cent through refinery directives, and further procurement is actively underway.

Commercial LPG has been regulated to prevent black marketing, not to penalise the hospitality sector, he added.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

Total non-farm payroll employment edged down by 92,000 in the month following an increase of 126,000 in January.

The US unemployment rate, at 4.4 per cent, as well as the number of unemployed, at 7.6 million, changed little month on month in February, official statistics show.
Both the labour force participation rate, at 62 per cent, and the employment-population ratio, at 59.3 per cent, changed little in the month.
US manufacturing sector labour productivity decreased by 1.9 per cent QoQ in Q4 2025.

Both the labour force participation rate (LFPR), at 62 per cent, and the employment-population ratio, at 59.3 per cent, changed little in the month, a BLS release said.

These figures showed little change year on year (YoY) after accounting for the annual adjustments to the population controls.

US non-farm business sector labour productivity increased by 2.8 per cent quarter on quarter (QoQ) in the fourth quarter (Q4) last year as output increased by 2.6 per cent QoQ and hours worked decreased by 0.2 per cent QoQ. It increased by 2.8 per cent YoY in the quarter.

Annual average productivity increased by 2.2 per cent from 2024 to 2025.

US manufacturing sector labour productivity decreased by 1.9 per cent QoQ in Q4 2025 as output decreased by 2.2 per cent QoQ and hours worked decreased by 0.3 per cent QoQ. In the durable manufacturing sector, productivity decreased by 3 per cent QoQ, reflecting a 2.3-per cent QoQ drop in output and a 0.7-per cent QoQ increase in hours worked.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)