Petrol and diesel rates in the country have not reduced despite a sharp drop in global crude oil prices for the past six days.
While state-run oil marketing companies have not increased fuel prices since March, reportedly due to upcoming assembly elections, petrol and diesel rates are already very high across the country.
At present, a litre of petrol in Delhi costs Rs 91.17, which is the highest-ever rate recorded in the national capital. In Mumbai, the same quantity of petrol costs a whopping Rs 97.57. Petrol is retailing well above Rs 90 per litre in all major cities in the country including Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and more.
Similarly, diesel rates also remain elevated across the country and have touched Rs 90 per litre in Jaipur. In Mumbai, a litre of diesel costs Rs 88.60, while it is retailing at Rs 81.47 in Delhi.
It may be noted that the high rate of central and state taxes on petrol and diesel has already resulted in a sharp hike in inflation. In February, retail inflation jumped sharply from 4.06 per cent in January to 5.03 per cent in February.
Although inflation remains within the Reserve Bank of India’s target band of 2-6 per cent, experts fear that it will rise further if energy prices continue to remain elevated.
Additionally, higher fuel prices have also had a cascading impact on other commodities including food items. Consumers are paying more for several other commodities due to higher petrol and diesel prices — be it Zomato orders or daily groceries.Higher fuel prices are also having an unfavourable impact on various other sectors, especially the smaller businesses.
While petrol and diesel rates continue to remain high in India, global crude oil prices extended losses for the sixth straight day. US crude fell below $60 again and was trading at $59.97 per barrel by 6:45 am today. Brent crude was off by 1 cent at $63.27.
The fresh fall in crude oil prices is due to a new wave of Covid-19 infections across Europe; it has led to new lockdowns and dampened hopes of a recovery in demand for fuels anytime soon.
Prices plunged sharply on Thursday, leaving crude oil down nearly 10 per cent this week with the reality that the pandemic is abiding, even if infections have plummeted in the US, which is the worst-hit country and the biggest consumer of crude oil.
