The fuel price increases have already begun feeding into freight and food costs and are expected to add to broader inflationary pressures across the economy.
In Delhi, petrol now costs ₹102.12 per litre and diesel ₹95.20 per litre. Rates vary across states depending on VAT levels. Petrol is priced at ₹117.25 per litre in Vijayawada, ₹111.21 in Mumbai and ₹113.51 in Kolkata. Diesel costs ₹104.96 in Vijayawada, ₹97.83 in Mumbai and ₹99.82 in Kolkata.
Industry executives indicated that further price hikes may be on the horizon. Despite the recent increases, OMCs are still incurring daily losses of “slightly less than ₹600 crore”, said Sujata Sharma, joint secretary in the petroleum ministry. Before the price hikes began, daily losses stood at about ₹1,000 crore.
“It’s not that OMCs are profiteering,” Sharma said, defending the price increases. “A large share of their income goes to the government as taxes, helping fund schools, roads, hospitals and other welfare programmes. They then undertake capital expenditure.”
On Monday, global crude benchmark Brent fell 6% to $98 a barrel on hopes of a swift US-Iran deal and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which could normalise crude supplies from the Gulf. Even after the decline, crude prices remain significantly above pre-war levels of around $70 a barrel.
OMCs had kept retail fuel prices unchanged for about two-and-a-half months after the Iran conflict began on February 28, a period that also coincided with assembly elections in some states.