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January 12, 2007 14:20 IST
The government will review petrol and diesel prices on January 31 and a reduction is likely if international crude prices fall further.
"There will be a review on January 31. If the current average continues there will be no cut. For a price reduction to happen, prices have to fall further," Petroleum Secretary M S Srinivasan said.
International crude prices have fallen to 19-month-low this month. The Indian basket of crude oil is currently averaging around $51 a barrel and a reduction in petrol and diesel prices is possible only if crude prices slip below $50 a barrel on a sustained basis.
Earlier, Srinivasan had said that the government may reduce petrol and diesel prices if the current fall in international oil prices continues and crude declines below $50 a barrel level.
In November, petrol and diesel prices were cut by Rs 2 and Re 1 a litre respectively when the basket of crude that Indian refiners buy was at $56.8 per barrel.
The Indian basket has since fallen to just under $53 per barrel, the lowest this fiscal. State-run oil companies are currently incurring a loss of Rs 0.22 per litre on petrol and Rs 1.42 a litre on diesel, he said.
Kerosene is being sold at a loss of Rs 13-14 per litre and domestic LPG at a loss of Rs 50 per cylinder. Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, Hindustan Petroleum and IBP together are losing about Rs 100 crore (Rs 1 billion) a day on fuel sales.
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