Germany retail fuels long-term outlook

Despite the declining outlook for oil products, Germany remains one of the largest European markets in volumetric terms. Nevertheless, post-Covid recovery in jet kerosene demand and slowly increasing gasoline consumption are more than offset by decreases from other products, such as diesel. Oil majors and domestic refiners have typically dominated the somewhat oligopolistic retail market. There is limited penetration of hypermarkets, but some oil companies offer their products at discount prices, exerting downward pressure on margins. EG Group’s acquisition of the former ExxonMobil and OMV networks and Couche-Tard’s takeover of TotalEnergies’ sites made the two companies the most influential independent retailers in Germany.