State-run oil companies on Monday increased prices of diesel and petrol by Re 1 per litre each.
Petroleum Minister Ram Naik hinted on Wednesday that prices of petrol and diesel may be cut further at the fortnightly review on Thursday, in tune with the global softening of crude prices.\n\n\n\n
Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar on Monday remained non-committal on rolling back the hike in petrol, diesel and cooking gas prices saying the demands for revisiting the decision could only be considered after the Prime Minister returns from The
The three companies in separate presentations to the Kirit Parikh Committee on fuel pricing suggested immediate freeing of petrol and diesel prices from government control.
The Union government will gain close to Rs 1.6 lakh crore in additional revenues this fiscal from a record hike in excise duty on petrol and diesel that has pushed the total incidence of taxation on auto fuels to 70 per cent of the price. Late on Tuesday evening, the government hiked excise duty on petrol by Rs 10 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 13 a litre to mop up gains arising from international oil prices falling to a two-decade low.
'We will have multiple engine options -- electric vehicle and internal combustion engine in diesel and petrol.'
promises a mileage of 24.2 kmpl.
State-owned fuel retailers are losing close to Rs 3 per litre on selling diesel while the profit on petrol has trimmed due to recent firming up in international oil prices, industry officials said detailing reasons for continuing to hold retail prices. Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), who control roughly 90 per cent of India's fuel market, 'voluntarily' have not changed petrol, diesel and cooking gas (LPG) prices for almost two years now, resulting in losses when input cost was higher and profits when raw material prices were lower.
The price of diesel sold to bulk users has been hiked by about Rs 25 per litre in line with a near 40 per cent rise in international oil prices, but retail rates at petrol pumps remain unchanged, sources said. Petrol pump sales have jumped by a fifth this month after bulk users like bus fleet operators and malls queued up at petrol bunks to buy fuel rather than the usual practice of ordering directly from oil companies, widening the losses of retailers. Worst hit are private retailers like Nayara Energy, Jio-bp and Shell, who have so far refused to curtail any volume despite a surge in sales.
The government ruled out any major jump in petrol and diesel prices after the elections, but said a review to bring the domestic prices in line with the raw material cost will be done by the new government.
Jet fuel (ATF) price was on Monday hiked by a steep 56.5 per cent and that of non-subsidised cooking gas LPG by Rs 11.5 per cylinder on the back of firming up of international oil rates, but petrol and diesel prices continued to remain on freeze for a record 78th day. Aviation turbine fuel (ATF) price was hiked by Rs 12,126.75 per kilolitre (kl), or 56.5 per cent, to Rs 33,575.37 per kl in the national capital, according to a price notification by State-owned oil marketing companies.
Under-recovery or the difference between retail price and its imported cost on diesel was 8 paisa per litre in the first half of September.
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.
Petrol and diesel prices may be hiked by up to Re 1 per litre each on August 15, the next due date for fuel price revision, in step with the surge in global oil prices.
According to police, CPI-M legislator K Bhimrao and other party supporters were arrested from Guindy railway station in Chennai.
Decrying the hike in diesel prices as "unjustified" action, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Tuesday demanded its roll back and withdrawal of powers granted to oil companies to regulate fuel prices.
The fall in international oil prices has resulted in handsome margins for state-owned firms on petrol and diesel sales, but not all of it would be reflected in the cut in the retail selling price, as Finance Ministry wants to take away some of the gain by raising excise duty.
The government on Tuesday said it has agreed in-principle to deregulate diesel prices, but is not considering similar proposal for the cooking gas.
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.
Top government officials in New Delhi have started discussions with stakeholders ranging from shipping and container companies to export promotion councils to understand the impact of the Iran-Israel tensions and plan ahead. Inter-ministerial talks are also being lined up amid the crisis situation in West Asia, sources confirmed. While the crude flows are not directly under any threat, elevated oil prices remain a concern, according to officials.
After hike in rates of petrol, diesel and LPG, the prices of CNG and cooking gas piped to household kitchens (PNG) in the national capital were hiked on Thursday by Re 1. CNG price in NCT of Delhi has been increased to Rs 59.01 per kg from Rs 58.01, according to the information posted on the website of Indraprastha Gas Ltd - the firm which retails CNG and piped cooking gas in the national capital. This is the third increase in CNG rates this month, which follows a spike in input (natural gas) prices across the globe.
Amid record-high fuel prices, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said there is no proposal as of now to bring crude oil, petrol, diesel, jet fuel (ATF) and natural gas under the Goods and Services Tax (GST). When the GST was introduced on July 1, 2017, amalgamating over a dozen central and state levies, five commodities - crude oil, natural gas, petrol, diesel, and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) - were kept out of its purview given the revenue dependence of the central and state governments on this sector. This meant that the central government continued to levy excise duty on them while state governments charged VAT. These taxes, with excise duty, in particular, have been raised periodically.
State-owned Indian Oil Corp wants diesel prices to be freed from government control before its twin follow-on public offersto raise maximum funds, company Chairman B M Bansal said on Monday.
In most parts of the landlocked northeastern state, items such as rice, potato, onion and egg besides LPG cylinders and petrol are selling at rates much above the ones fixed by the government.
IOC along with HPCL and BPCL took a hit of about Rs 4,500 crore from absorbing Re 1 a litre hike.
Close on the heels of a 70 paise per litre hike in petrol prices, the Oil Ministry is pushing for an increase in diesel and domestic cooking gas LPG prices, even though it is unsure of political support for the unpopular move with the ruling UPA alliance.
Still battling the fallout of last month's steep Rs 7.54 a litre hike in petrol price, the government on Friday said it is not considering raising rates of diesel, domestic gas (LPG) and kerosene for the moment.
The GoM meet on fuel price hike remained inconclusive. The ministers evaluated various options of fuel hike but failed to arrive on a decision.
You see the Thar is not just a Car.... It is The Thar.
Against the backdrop of the Trinamool Congress' threat to pull out of United Progressive Alliance over the petrol price rise, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday backed the government on the issue.
Sugar prices are hovering near six-year highs, leaving a bad taste in Indian consumers' palates but sweetening the portfolios of investors in related stocks at Dalal Street. Shares of sugar manufacturers such as Piccadily Agro, DCM Shriram, Magadh Sugar, and Bajaj Hindustan have rallied up to a whopping 200 per cent so far in the financial year 2024 (FY24) as deficient monsoon rains in major sugarcane producer states like Maharashtra and Karnataka are expected to lead to a shortfall in sugar output ahead. In comparison, the BSE Sensex has modestly gained 11 per cent during this period.
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.
Petrol and diesel will cost Rs 2 a litre less from Wednesday after the first excise duty cut by the Modi government comes into effect.
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.
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.
A week after the steep hike in petrol prices by Rs 5 a litre, the government on Monday said a ministerial panel is likely to meet in the next few days to take a decision on raising diesel, LPG and kerosene rates.
As global tensions put pressure on the cost of crude oil, sending petrol prices above 1 a litre across the UK, This is Money investment writer Philip Scott investigates how investors can profit from rising oil prices.
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