NEW DELHI : Petrol and diesel prices were left unchanged today for the 21st consecutive day. Cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai and Kolkata, however, saw a rate hike varying between Re 1- ₹1.5 on April 1 due to a hike in VAT imposed by state governments. State-run fuel retailers have not tinkered with their basic selling prices since March 16.
In Delhi, a litre of petrol is priced at ₹69.59 per litre and diesel at ₹62.29 per litre today. In Mumbai, petrol is selling at ₹76.31 per litre and diesel at ₹66.21 per litre. In Chennai, a litre of petrol will cost ₹72.28 per litre whereas diesel is now priced at ₹65.71 per litre. In Bengaluru, petrol is now selling at ₹73.55 and diesel at ₹65.96. In Hyderabad, petrol pumps are charging ₹73.97 for petrol and ₹67.82 for diesel. If you are in Gurgaon, you will have to shell out ₹70.21 for petrol and ₹62.08 for diesel. In Kolkata, petrol pumps are charging ₹73.30 for petrol and ₹65.62 for diesel.
During the 21-day nationwide lockdown to combat the spread of coronavirus, petrol pumps are allowed to operate but only those using vehicles for essential or emergency services are allowed to go out on the streets. Last month, petrol sales fell by more than 15% while that of diesel by almost 25%.
Amid the lockdown, startups who are delivering fuel at doorstep are witnessing a surge in demand. Various petroleum companies and startups recently launched diesel-at-doorstep service including Fuelkart by Bharat Petroleum and 'Humsafar' by a startup Samridhi in the NCR and various parts of the country.
In the international market, Brent crude oil rates fell as much as 12% in early trade, dropping as low as $30.03 a barrel before recovering to trade around $32 a barrel, Reuters reported. Today's slump in crude benchmarks came after a strong surge on April 2 and 3, with Brent gaining 38% over the two days as the market reacted to US President Donald Trump's tweets that a deal to cut output was imminent.
(Inputs from agencies)
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