The Petroleum Federation of India, the apex body of public and private oil firms, has submitted to the oil ministry a 100-day agenda for the new government. On top of its list is decontrol of petrol and diesel prices. Currently, public sector retailers sell auto fuel at government-dictated rates, which the private sector competition is unable to match in times of high input cost (crude oil prices).
International oil prices continue to be extremely volatile, falling on one day and rising thereafter, a top oil ministry official said explaining the reason behind no reduction in petrol and diesel prices despite softening in input cost, but could not say if the rates will be cut before Maharashtra elections. Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures fell below $70 per barrel last week -- the first time since December 2021 -- but gained thereafter. Brent was trading at $74.58 per barrel on Thursday while West Texas Intermediate advanced to trade at $71.71.
In a move to protect the interests of national oil companies against the fluctuations in global crude prices, the government on Monday decided to grant these PSUs limited freedom to fix petrol and diesel prices.
Wholesale price inflation (WPI) came in at (-) 0.32 per cent in November, driven by an uptick in prices of food articles like pulses and vegetables on a month-on-month basis, government data showed on Monday.
State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has reported a 10 per cent decline in its June quarter net profit on lower oil prices and stagnant production from its aging fields. The company reported a net profit of Rs 8,024 crore in the first quarter of 2025-26 fiscal year, compared to Rs 8,938 crore earning in the same period last year, a company statement said.
'In the long run, India's strong growth story and reforms to make assets globally attractive will determine the rupee's resilience.'
In Mumbai, jet fuel costs Rs 71,940.36 per kl as against Rs 73,306.89 per kl previously, IOC said.
Other members of the committee are Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations chairperson Isher Judge Ahluwalia, National Council of Applied Economic Research director general Suman K Bery and the secretaries of yje ministries of finance and petroleum.
The price of jet fuel (ATF) was sharply increased by 7.5 per cent on Tuesday, while the cost of LPG used in commercial establishments was reduced by Rs 58.50 per cylinder, reflecting shifts in international benchmark rates. After three rounds of price cuts, aviation turbine fuel (ATF) price was increased by Rs 6,271.5 per kilolitre, or 7.5 per cent, to Rs 89,344.05 per kl in the national capital - home to one of the busiest airports in the country, according to state-owned fuel retailers.
Wholesale price inflation (WPI) declined to (-) 0.13 per cent in June as prices of food articles and fuel saw deflation, along with easing in manufactured product costs, government data showed on Monday. WPI-based inflation was 0.39 per cent in May. It was 3.43 per cent in June last year.
Rural India outpaced urban centres in passenger vehicle sales in 2025, recording a growth of 12 per cent compared with 8 per cent in cities.
IOC said the daily price revision is an initiative for ensuring the best possible prices to the customers as well as improved transparency on the pricing mechanism.
Price hikes of controlled petroleum products such as diesel, cooking gas and kerosene have been happening annually in the month of June, irrespective of the companies' losses.
Loans for Indian airlines have dried up as banks have become cautious to lend to the sector.
Apart from this, state refiners are looking at optimising crude oil inventory levels without in any way affecting fuel supplies in the domestic market.
The government may defer raising the price of fuels to early next week, after the two-day national executive meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which begins on Sunday. Such a move would provide "ammunition" to the main opposition party on a platter, according to an informed source.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) does not target any price level on the rupee, Governor Sanjay Malhotra reiterated at an International Monetary Fund and World Bank event on Wednesday.
Wholesale price inflation (WPI) declined to a 14-month low of 0.39 per cent in May on easing prices of food articles and fuel, and experts said geopolitical tensions could push up prices.
The finance minister has labelled about 65 per cent of the fuel excise revenue as cess, including the restructured road and infrastructure cess
The threat of being priced out of the market by state-owned oil marketing companies has forced the private sector players to also opt for price cuts of auto fuels.
In a first, Indian oil public sector undertakings (PSUs) finalised a one-year contract to import around 2.2 million tonnes (mt) of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from the US. The LPG import deal comes at a time when negotiations for an India-US bilateral trade agreement (BTA) are gathering steam. Earlier in the month, US President Donald Trump had said Washington and New Delhi were "pretty close" to reaching a fair trade deal.
The young man and his newly wedded wife got petrol in a five litre can as a gift.
India's annual oil import bill could rise by $9-11 billion if the country is compelled to move away from Russian crude in response to US threats of additional tariffs or penalties on Indian exports, analysts said. India, the world's third-largest oil consumer and importer, has reaped significant benefits by swiftly substituting market-priced oil with discounted Russian crude following Western sanctions on Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
India, the world's third-largest oil consumer, spent 2.5 billion euro on buying crude oil from Russia in September, 14 per cent less than the previous month, a European think tank said. India remained the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels in September behind China, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
In the first reduction in rate in two months, jet fuel or ATF price on Thursday was cut by 3 per cent in line with softening international crude oil prices. Aviation turbine fuel (ATF) price was reduced by Rs 1,887 per kilolitre, or 3 per cent, to Rs 58,374.16 per kl in the national capital, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers. This is the first reduction in rates after four rounds of increase since February. Rates were increased by Rs 3,246.75 per kl on February 1, followed by a 3.6 per cent hike on February 16, and a steep 6.5 per cent raise on March 1. On March 16, prices were again raised by Rs 860.25 per kl. On Thursday, a Rs 10 per cylinder reduction in price of domestic cooking gas LPG also came into effect.
Earlier in the day, the ministry of external affairs "strongly advised" Indians to avoid travel to Iran until further notice, amid rising tensions and protests in the Islamic Republic.
Wholesale price inflation dropped to 0.85 per cent in April as prices of food articles, manufactured products, and fuel eased, government data showed on Wednesday. WPI-based inflation was 2.05 per cent in March. It was 1.19 per cent in April last year.
Aviation turbine fuel rates in Delhi were raised by Rs 1,297, or 3.2 per cent, to Rs 41,489 per kilolitre effective midnight tonight, said an official of Indian Oil Corporation, the nation's largest oil marketing firm.
Reliance Industries Ltd on Thursday said it has halted the use of Russian crude at its export-only refinery in Jamnagar, Gujarat, as the company moves to comply with European Union sanctions. Reliance is India's largest buyer of Russian oil, which it processes and turns into fuel, such as petrol and diesel, at its giant oil refining complex at Jamnagar.
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd is estimated to have earned 724 million euros (about Rs 6,850 crore) from exporting fuel made from Russian crude oil to the US in one year, an European think tank said in a report. "From January 2024 to the end of January 2025, the US imported EUR 2.8 billion of refined oil from six refineries in India and Turkey that process Russian crude.
It is time he stood up and assured the middle class that they can count on him as one of their own, says Dr Sudhir Bisht.
After a record-breaking year, India's automobile industry is entering 2026 on a relatively strong footing, with sales growth expected in the 6-8 per cent range. The outlook is underpinned by policy support, including GST rationalisation, easing monetary conditions, and income tax relief, which together are likely to improve affordability and sustain consumer demand across vehicle segments.
The cost of non-subsidised LPG -- the one that consumers buy after exhausting their quota of 12 bottles of 14.2-kg at below market price -- has been cut by Rs 100.5 to Rs 637.
The state-run oil firms will raise jet fuel price by Rs 1,338 per kl effective midnight tonight, an Indian Oil official said on Thursday.
The Planning Commission has pitched for linking of domestic fuel prices with those in the international market saying it is necessary for country's global "economic reputation".
The increases have snapped a six fortnight trend of reduction in rates.
The Left parties on Wednesday asked the government to reduce prices of LPG and diesel and restore 9.5 per cent interest rate on Employees Provident Fund.
Tata Motors, which now houses the company's commercial vehicle business, on Thursday reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 867 crore in the September quarter, impacted by mark-to-market losses of Rs 2,026 crore on account of investment in Tata Capital.
A senior civil aviation ministry official said this was one of the key issues discussed during Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel's meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday to ask for a relief on ATF. Top airline executives like Jet Airways Chairman Naresh Goyal and Kingfisher Airlines Chairman Vijay Mallya also met the PM to highlight the issue.
