All time high petrol, diesel prices more pain ahead

All time high petrol, diesel prices- More pain ahead Petrol and Diesel prices have touched all-time highs as the cost of commuting burns a hole in the common Indian's pockets. Want to know where the fuel prices are the lowest? Catch all updates here

Feel like you're being robbed blind by high fuel prices? Petrol price on Sunday touched a record high of Rs 76.24 per litre and diesel climbed to its highest ever level of Rs 67.57. Petrol was the costliest in Mumbai where high local taxes led to a price of Rs 84.07 per litre. Diesel was the costliest in Hyderabad, where it was priced at Rs 73.45 a litre, again due to high local taxes. However, the Finance Ministry on Friday virtually ruled out reducing excise duty on petrol and diesel in the near future. Further, while Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the government would try to work out a solution soon, he also said that it was "not in our hand" and blamed the increase in fuel prices on "less production of oil in OPEC countries". Given these statements, can we expect more pain ahead in the future? Meanwhile, Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg ruled out any possible impact on economic growth due to the

surge in oil prices. "On the macroeconomic front, the economy is doing well and we are not making any downward revision for growth or upward revision for fiscal deficit," Garg said.The hike is all set to burn a bigger hole in commuters' pockets. Speaking to a news agency, a local in Delhi urged the government to bring down the prices and said, "The government must bring down prices of petrol. They must reduce excise duty and use other measures. The prices are already so high."Fuel rates vary from state to state depending on the local sales tax or VAT.Mumbai residents are also facing the brunt. A local told news agencies, "Why are prices so high in Mumbai when it is comparatively lower in Gujarat and Delhi? It is tough for those who have to travel everyday. We shell out Rs 120 for petrol regularly."

Here are the top 10 developments on the hike in fuel prices: 1) More pain ahead? On the fuel price front, can we expect more pain ahead in the future? Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that the government would try to work out a solution soon to deal with the situation. But he also said that the government doesn't have much control over surging fuel prices as the global oil prices are soaring and there is less production in OPEC countries. "It's not in our hand. There is less production of oil in OPEC countries. The government will soon come out with a solution," he told reporters in Bhubaneswar.

2) Petrol, diesel touch all-time highs as oil companies hike rates: Early on Sunday, petrol and diesel prices stood at a record high of Rs 76.24 per litre and Rs 67.57 per litre, respectively.Petrol price increased by 33 paise a litre in Delhi -- the highest since the daily price revision has come into effect since mid-June 2017-- and diesel by 26 paise, according to price notification issued by state-owned oil firms.

3) Petrol costliest in Mumbai, cheapest in Goa's Panjim: Petrol prices on Sunday surged to Rs 84.07 per litre in Mumbai after the rate hike due to high local taxes. Petrol in Kolkatta cost Rs 78.91 per litre, while it was priced at Rs 79.13 in Chennai. Petrol was the cheapest in Delhi among the four metros at Rs 76.26. However, among all cities, the cheapest petrol was available in Panjim, where it was priced at Rs 70.26.

4) Diesel cheapest in Delhi among metros: Diesel rates stood at Rs 67.57 a litre as compared to Rs 71.94 in Mumbai, Rs 70.12 in Kolkatta and Rs 71.32 in Chennai, the notification said.Diesel was the costliest in Hyderabad at Rs 73.45 and cheapest in Port Blair, where a litre was priced at Rs 63.35.

5) Oil price to raise import bill by up to $50 bn: The hike in global oil prices may inflate India's import bill by around $25 billion to $50 billion, said the Finance Ministry. "There was a net impact of around $70 billion last year due to oil prices. This year, there may be an (additional) impact of something between $25 billion to $50 billion under different scenarios," Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg told reporters.

6) Congress accuses Modi of using petrol price as a political tool, demands cut: The Congress alleged that the Narendra Modi-led BJP government were using the prices of petroleum products "as a tool" to benefit the BJP during elections. Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill said that the price of petrol and diesel were at a record five-year high, and if the government was able to control the price of petroleum products during Karnataka polls, it should continue to do so around the year in the interest of people.

7) UDF hits out at Centre over frequent hike in fuel prices: The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala hit out at the BJP-led government at the centre for the frequent hike in petroleum prices, alleging that it was conniving with oil companies to 'help' them make 'unfair' profits. UDF also criticised the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government for not being able to alleviate the burden on the common people.

8) As on May 20, fuel Prices increased for seven-days straight: Since the oil firms were allowed to revise rates from May 14 on a daily basis -- after rates were kept frozen for 19 days due to Karnataka elections -- fuel prices had increased for seven days straight as on May 20. In total, petrol prices have been raised by Rs 1.61 a litre and diesel by 1.64 in the past one week.

9) Oil PSUs absorbed losses during the Karnataka election: Oil firms are estimated to have made losses to the tune of Rs 5 billion on absorbing higher cost resulting from the hike in international oil rates and weakening of the rupee against the US dollar during the nearly three week duration when the prices were kept unchanged during the Karnataka elections.

10) Benchmark prices continued to surge during the elections: The benchmark international rate for petrol increased from $78.84 per barrel on April 24 to $84.97 on May 14. Similarly, benchmark diesel prices increased from $84.68 on April 24 to $90.28 on May14.

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