Fuel prices at record high: Petrol, diesel prices hiked again

petrol diesel price hike

After remaining steady for three consecutive days, the prices of petrol increased by 24 paise per litre and diesel hiked by 15 paise on February 27.

The prices of petrol and diesel in New Delhi stood at Rs 91.17 per litre and Rs 81.47 per litre, respectively, according to the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL). In Mumbai, the price of petrol is Rs 97.57 per litre. The price of diesel stood at Rs 88.60 per litre.

Petrol and diesel prices have been rising continuously since February 9. In the 14 increases since then, the prices have gone up by Rs 4.22 per litre for petrol and Rs 4.34 a litre for diesel in Delhi.

The increase in the previous weeks has taken petrol to cross historic high levels of Rs 100 a litre in several cities across the country. The fuel prices have increased amid a rally in global crude oil prices, with coronavirus vaccination drives across the world.

Since fuel prices are benchmarked to a 15-day rolling average of global refined products` prices and dollar exchange rate, pump prices can be expected to remain northbound over the next few days even if crude price stabilises.

The petrol and diesel prices have increased 26 times in 2021 with the two auto fuels increasing by Rs 7.46 and Rs 7.60 per litre, respectively so far this year.

After concerns raised by the opposition about the hike in fuel prices, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das also urged the government to slash indirect taxes on petrol and diesel.

"Pump prices of petrol and diesel have reached historical highs," Das noted in the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) minutes released on February 22.