India has witnessed third round of increase in petrol and diesel prices in less than 10 days amid the crude oil crisis due to the ongoing West Asia war. The state-run oil marketing companies adjusted retail fuel rates, and overall, petrol and diesel rates have surged by nearly Rs 5 per litre within a short span.
On Saturday, the public sector oil companies increased petrol and diesel prices by nearly 90 paise per litre, the third hike since May 15, as they sought to partly offset mounting losses from selling fuels below market rates amid a sharp rise in global crude prices due to supply concerns.
But that still leaves them with an under-recovery of 13 on every litre of petrol sold by them and 38 a litre on diesel (both pre-tax) as global prices remain above the $100 a barrel mark, as reported by The Times of India.
Earlier, before any hike in prices was announced, the Union petroleum and natural gas minister Hardeep Singh Puri had said that oil marketing companies (OMCs) are collectively losing around Rs 1,000 crore every day as they continue to sell petrol, diesel and LPG below cost. He added that the cumulative under-recoveries have risen to nearly Rs 1.98 lakh crore.
After factoring in the Rs 3 per litre hike in petrol and diesel prices, Prashant Vasisht, Senior Vice President and Co-Group Head, Corporate Ratings. ICRA Ltd. said the Oil Marketing Companies to incur losses of around Rs 500 crore per day with anticipation of few more price hikes soon.
Petrol and diesel prices continued their upward march. In Delhi, petrol prices climbed by 87 paise per litre, moving from Rs 98.64 to Rs 99.51 per litre. Diesel prices also rose sharply by 91 paise, from Rs 91.58 to Rs 92.49 per litre. The latest revision comes after fuel retailers had already raised prices by Rs 3 per litre on May 15, followed by another increase of 90 paise on May 19.
Oil Firms Continue to Loss Rs 13 on Petrol, Rs 38 on Diesel Despite Price Hike
