Petrol and diesel prices were raised for the second day in a row on Wednesday as state-owned fuel retailers resumed daily rate revision after a more than two-week long hiatus during assembly elections in states like West Bengal. Petrol price was increase ford by 19 paise per litre and diesel by 21 paise a litre, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers. Petrol in the national capital now costs Rs 90.74 a litre and diesel comes for Rs 81.12 per litre.
Since end-May there has been volatility in the foreign exchange market.
'Every year we import approximately $70 billion worth of gold -- closer to $72 billion in 2025-2026, an all-time record.' 'There is no parallel for this anywhere in the world. And this love for gold will not disappear overnight.'
Households should moderate large discretionary expenses for the time being.
'They should prioritise essential spending. They should maintain an emergency fund covering 6 to 12 months of expenses.'
The price of liquefied petroleum gas cylinders across all categories, including subsidised LPG, was on Wednesday hiked by Rs 25 per cylinder -- the third straight increase in rates in less than two months.
Government may raise petrol price by Rs 2 a litre and diesel by Re 1 a litre this week, but a duty rejig to minimise impact of high international crude oil prices looks unlikely. The decision on this will be taken by the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The government is exploring various options, including a marginal hike in prices of petrol and diesel, and a possible duty cut to ease burden on state-run oil firms that are increasingly losing revenue due to global crude prices surging close to $100 a barrel. "We will do all that is possible to protect the interests of our PSUs," Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said after a brief meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the issue on Friday.
Jet fuel prices on Monday were hiked by a steep 5.3 per cent - the tenth straight increase this year -- to an all-time high, in line with a surge in global energy prices. The price of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) -- the fuel that helps aeroplanes fly -- was hiked by Rs 6,188.25 per kilolitre, or 5.29 per cent, to Rs 1,23,039.71 per kl (Rs 123 per litre) in the national capital, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers. This is the 10th straight increase in jet fuel prices this year.
The government had last week hiked diesel prices by Rs 5.63 a litre and capped the number of subsidised LPG cylinders to six per family a year.
Jet fuel prices on Wednesday were hiked by over 18 per cent -- the steepest ever increase -- to all-time high levels after international oil price surged to a multi-year high.
The government on Wednesday broadly hinted about a hike in petrol and diesel prices, saying although it has kept retail prices unchanged it cannot do so for long given the rise in crude oil rates.
She charged the government with profiteering at the expense of the people, saying its duty was to help them in times of crisis and not make profits out of their hard-earned money.
Oil companies have welcomed the hike in petrol and diesel as it will help them cut losses on sale of fuel.
Government on Tuesday said it was considering whether to increase prices of petrol and diesel due to increase in international crude oil prices.
Petrol and diesel prices were on Wednesday hiked in seven states like West Bengal and Maharastra and that of domestic LPG in six states as state-owned oil firms recalibrated rates to reflect changes in local levies.
'I have no problems with the finance ministry or with state governments treating petrol pump prices as the last resort for meeting their ambitious spending targets with very limited revenue resources.' 'But let's do away with this smokescreen of free pricing of petrol and diesel and go back to administered pricing regime,' says Dr Sudhir Bisht.
The government's decision to pass on the rise in oil prices to consumers not only inflates their petrol and diesel bills, it also fuels concerns over a possible economic recession, analysts said.
State-owned oil companies are losing about Rs 4 per litre on petrol, industry officials said.
State-owned fuel retailers, who control 95 per cent of the petrol pump sales, sell diesel at government-fixed rates, which are way lower than the cost of production.
The government will look into the issue of revising the petrol and diesel prices in view of the steep increase in international crude oil prices, the new Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Mani Shankar Aiyar said on Monday.
Diesel prices may be hiked by Rs 10 per litre over a 10-month period and kerosene rates increased by same quantum over the next two years if a proposal being mulled in the Oil Ministry is accepted.
The government does not seem inclined, at least in the petroleum sector, to effect sudden and steep upward price revisions to tame its huge subsidy burden and rein in fiscal deficit.
Diesel rates had gone up by Rs 12.55 a litre between June 7, when oil firms resumed revising prices in line with cost, and July 25.
An increase in petrol, diesel, domestic cooking gas (LPG) and kerosene prices looks "imminent" after the Finance Ministry said it has no money to provide for fuel subsidy.
The Rajya Sabha was adjourned twice while the opposition parties staged a walkout in Lok Sabha on Tuesday, voicing their protest against the increase in the prices of petrol, diesel and cooking gas LPG.
Cooking gas LPG prices may be hiked next week after under-recovery on the fuel widened to over Rs 100 per cylinder, sources said insisting that the rate hike, including the quantum of increase, is dependent on government permission. If allowed, this will be the fifth increase in cooking gas rates across all categories - households using subsidised gas for cooking and heating purposes, non-subsidised fuel and industrial-sized gas. LPG rates were last hiked by Rs 15 per cylinder on October 6, taking the total increase in rates since July to Rs 90 per 14.2-kg cylinder.
In a bid to lower the impact of an unavoidable hike in petrol and diesel prices, Oil Minister Murli Deora has asked states like Delhi and Andhra Pradesh to lower sales tax (VAT) on auto fuels and shift towards specific rates.
India is back on the diplomatic table pushing oil producing countries to raise production in a bid to cool down runaway oil prices. Brent crude oil prices traded above $90 a barrel, on Thursday, for the first time since 2014. Brent is the most popular marker for crude oil trade. It is used as a benchmark for two-thirds of the world's internationally traded crude oil.
Holding her party would oppose any 'attempt to sell out the country', she claimed that in the past five months, the Centre had done nothing 'good' and that 'Bharatiya Janata Party is only busy beating its own drum in the social media'.
After Delhi, CNG price in Mumbai has been hiked by Rs 1.50 per kg and the rate of cooking gas piped to houses by Re 1 due to rise in input costs. Mahanagar Gas Ltd, which retails CNG to automobiles and piped natural gas to households for cooking purposes in Mumbai and surrounding cities, said the increased prices will come into effect from the intervening night of July 8 and 9.
The demonstration was staged at the Alka Talkies Square in the city where the women lit the earthen stove fire using wood and kerosene and offered the tea without milk to the bystanders, even as party workers raised anti-government slogans denouncing the fuel price hike.
The government was likely to take a decision on a hike in petrol and diesel prices in mid-July, a government official said on Monday. The review has been necessitated by the increase in global and domestic crude oil prices.
Home-grown automobile major Mahindra & Mahindra, whose sales are predominantly driven by diesel-powered utility vehicles, has said an increase of Rs 5 a litre in the price of the fuel or a differential of up to 20 per cent with petrol price will not impact vehicle sales.
The comparisons were available for 12 countries.
As the world's third-largest oil importer and consumer, India is running out of options as the relentless surge in international oil prices make it imperative to pass them on to consumers, officials said on Monday. India imports 85 per cent of its crude oil needs and about half of its natural gas requirement. While the imported crude oil is turned into fuels such as petrol and diesel, gas is used as CNG in automobiles and fuel in factories.
The average price of Indian basket of crude oil during 2007-08 (upto August) has increased to $68.34 per barrel as compared to 62.46 dollars a barrel during 2006-07.
In June, the government had decontrolled petrol, causing a hike of Rs 3.5 per litre, and increased diesel prices by Rs 2 a litre, LPG by Rs 35 a cylinder and kerosene by 3 a litre -- amid protests by opposition parties.
Ministry to propose a new subsidy mechanism to cap upstream firms' share.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday announced country wide protest programme for two days beginning Wednesday against the hike in the prices of petroleum products.
Petrol price was on Wednesday hiked by a steep Rs 3.38 per litre and diesel by Rs 2.67 a litre, reversing a two-month declining trend.
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