Petrol prices in India are costlier than the United States but cheaper than European countries, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas R P N Singh said on Tuesday.

Petrol in Delhi is priced at Rs 63.70 a litre, while the same in the USA is priced at Rs 42.82 per litre.

The price in India is more than any of its neighbours -- Pakistan (Rs 41.81 a litre), Sri Lanka (Rs 50.30 per litre), Bangladesh (Rs 44.80 a litre) and Nepal (Rs 63.24 per litre).

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But the rate in Delhi is cheaper than France (Rs 94.97 per litre), Germany (Rs 95.99 a litre), the United Kingdom (Rs 96.39 per litre) and Italy (Rs 96.79 a litre), he said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.

Higher rates for petrol in India are due to higher incidence of taxes. Without taxes, petrol would cost Rs 23.37 per litre in Delhi.

The diesel price in Delhi, at Rs 41.29 per litre, is cheaper than in the US and European nations, but costlier than Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Without taxes, diesel would cost Rs 24.90 a litre.

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The current price of diesel in Delhi is Rs 4.97 a litre below its actual cost. In the US, diesel is priced at Rs 45.84 a litre, while in France, it costs Rs 69.87 per litre.

In Germany, diesel costs Rs 72.54 a litre, while it is priced at Rs 82.93 a litre in the UK and Rs 74 per litre in Italy.

In the neighbourhood, diesel is priced at Rs 46.70 a litre in Pakistan, Rs 45.38 a litre in Nepal, Rs 34.37 a litre in Sri Lanka and Rs 27.32 per litre in Bangladesh.

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Singh said the PDS kerosene price of Rs 14.83 a litre in Delhi was the lowest in the region, with the cooking fuel priced at Rs 44.06 per litre in Pakistan, Rs 24.67 in Sri Lanka, Rs 27.32 in Bangladesh and Rs 45.38 a litre in Nepal.

Similarly, the domestic LPG rate of Rs 399 per 14.2-kg cylinder is lower than the price tag of Rs 757.04 in Pakistan, Rs 863.40 in Sri Lanka, Rs 469.24 in Bangladesh and Rs 819.60 in Nepal.

The price of kerosene is subsidised by Rs 23.74 a litre and LPG by Rs 247 per cylinder in India.

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Singh said oil marketing companies pay a Trade Parity Price (TPP) for the purchase of petrol/diesel and Import Parity Price (IPP) for the purchase of PDS kerosene and domestic LPG.

"The IPP/TPP are determined based on prices prevailing in the international market," he said. "Further, the retail selling prices of sensitive petroleum products for the consumers is calculated by adding the inland freight, marketing margins and duties and taxes to the price paid to refinery."

The government controls prices of diesel, PDS kerosene and domestic LPG to insulate the common man from the impact of rising oil prices in international markets, he added.