Petrol prices at 3-year high; diesel at record high

NEW DELHI: Petrol and diesel prices kept surging even on Wednesday, touching new highs in the national capital and other metros. Petrol was sold at Rs 72.43 per litre in Delhi, the highest in three years. It cost Rs 72.51 on August 2014, according to data from Indian Oil Corp.

In Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai, petrol was sold at Rs 75.13, Rs 80.30 and Rs 75.12 per litre respectively, also at over three-year high levels. The previous highs were Rs 75.46 (Kolkata, October 2014), Rs 80.60 (Mumbai, August 2014) and Rs 75.78 per litre (Chennai, August 2014).Similarly, diesel prices, which have been touching new levels, shot up further on Wednesday across all major cities. 

In Delhi, diesel was sold Rs 63.38 per litre. In Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai, it cost Rs 66.04, Rs 67.50 and Rs 66.84 a litre respectively.Diesel is widely used to transport goods including food products. Experts say this will push up inflation.

Several factors like production curbs by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and high demand have led to a surge in crude oil prices. As on January 24, price of the Brent crude oil hovered around $70 a barrel.

Also, daily price revision in India allows for a rise in domestic fuel prices in accordance with international trends. The earlier system of price determination of petrol had a waiting period of 15 days.

On the other hand, imposition of state taxes and levies generally hikes prices. Currently, the two fuels do not come under the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax.