Petrol, diesel prices cut for fourth straight day
Fuel prices have been declining since Thursday as oil companies factored in softening of international rates
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New Delhi: Petrol and diesel prices were cut for the fourth straight day Sunday on softening international oil prices, providing some relief to consumers battered by two months of relentless rate hikes. Petrol price was cut by 25 paise a litre and diesel by 17 paise, according to the price notification of state-owned oil firms. In Delhi, petrol now costs ₹ 81.74 a litre and diesel is priced at ₹ 75.19 per litre. In Mumbai, petrol is sold for ₹ 87.21 per litre and diesel at ₹ 78.82.
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Fuel prices have been declining since Thursday as oil companies factored in softening of international rates. In four days, petrol price has been cut by ₹ 1.09 per litre and diesel by 50 paise. State-run oil marketing companies Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) revise fuel prices with effect from 0600 hrs on a daily basis.
The rates were reduced by a minimum ₹ 2.50 per litre across the country on October 5, when the government cut excise duty on petrol and diesel by ₹ 1.50 a litre and asked oil PSUs to subsidise the fuels by another Re 1 a litre. The reduction in BJP-ruled states was more as they matched this cut by an equivalent reduction in local sales tax or VAT.
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The price cut follows international oil prices trading near the lowest level in a month on a bigger-than-expected gain in American stockpiles. On Friday, West Texas Intermediate for November delivery settled at USD 69.12 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent for December settlement was at USD 79.78 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. Brent had earlier this month hit a four-year high of USD 86.74 a barrel.
Prior to Thursday’s cut in rates, diesel price had risen by ₹ 2.74 per litre since October 5 to more than wipe away the excise duty cut and oil firm subsidy. Petrol price had during this period risen by ₹ 1.33 a litre.
Before the October 5 price cut, petrol in Delhi had hit an all-time high of ₹ 84 per litre and diesel was at record ₹ 75.45. This came down to ₹ 81.50 per litre for petrol and ₹ 72.95 in case of diesel.
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In Mumbai, petrol had hit a peak of ₹ 91.34 hit on October 4 and diesel was sold at a record high of ₹ 80.10.
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