Fuel Prices on February 3: Check petrol, diesel rates in Delhi, Mumbai and other cities

Petrol and diesel in Delhi cost Rs 96.72 and Rs 89.62 per litre. In Mumbai, petrol is being sold for Rs 106.31 a litre and diesel for Rs 94.27 a litre

Petrol and diesel prices held steady across metro cities on February 3, the latest price notification issued by fuel retailers showed.

Petrol and diesel in Delhi cost Rs 96.72 and Rs 89.62 a litre, respectively. In Mumbai, petrol is being sold for Rs 106.31 per litre and diesel for Rs 94.27.

Petrol and diesel are priced at Rs 102.63 and Rs 94.24 in Chennai and at Rs 106.03 and Rs 92.76 in Kolkata, respectively.

The Union Budget for 2023-24 announced investment of Rs 30,000 crore to state-owned fuel retailers to make up for the massive losses they ran because of holding petrol and diesel prices despite rise in cost in a bid to help the government contain inflation.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has allocated the money under the head "capital support to oil marketing companies". It offered no explanation why the blue chip, cash rich oil PSUs should need capital support.

Oil prices made modest gains in early trade on February 3, but were heading for a second straight week of losses, as the market looked for more signs of a strong recovery in fuel demand in China to offset looming slumps in other major economies.

Brent crude futures rose 16 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $82.33 a barrel at 0110 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 18 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $76.06 a barrel.

So far this week, Brent has dropped by 4.8 percent, extending a 1.1 percent loss from the previous week. WTI has fallen by 4.5 percent after sliding 2 percent in the prior week.

Mixed signs of a fuel demand recovery in China, the world's top oil importer, have kept a lid on the market.

ANZ analysts pointed to a sharp jump in traffic in China's 15 largest cities following the Lunar New Year holiday, but also noted that Chinese traders had been "relatively absent" from markets.

The prospect of an economic rebound in China after COVID-19 curbs eased has buoyed the oil market so far this year, along with a weaker dollar that makes the commodity cheaper for those holding other currencies.

(With Inputs from Reuters)