Car owners are in for some trouble with the price of petrol on the boil again. The price of motor spirit (petrol) has risen to ₹81.73 a litre in the National Capital through steady daily price revisions. From ₹80.43 a litre on August 1, the price of petrol in Delhi is now up by ₹1.30 a litre. Petrol prices across the country have also gone up in the same proportion, but the sale price varies because of differing State levies on fuel such as Value Added Tax.
In the last week alone, petrol price has risen in 6 instalments ranging between 10 paisa and 19 paisa a litre from ₹80.90 a litre last Wednesday (August 19). The price was kept unchanged on August 26.
Diesel price
The price of diesel has remained flat at ₹73.56 a litre for the entire month till now. According to sector watchers, auto fuel prices are likely to remain at these levels in the near term till demand picks up.
The firming up of petrol prices is being viewed to be in line with crude oil prices also rising to a five-month high this week. This is being attributed to a decline in crude oil stocks in the United States of America. But Brent crude oil prices still remain around $45 a barrel, much lower than the $65 to $70 a barrel levels in January.
“While customers tend to watch every rupee spent on fuel, the current price hike is meagre. There is also a marked difference in consumption of fuels, with auto fuels still trailing consumption levels of a year ago,” said an analyst.
Petrol, diesel and LPG consumption regained significantly till June after the Covid-19 lockdowns eased across the country. But diesel consumption contracted again in July, widening the consumption gap between this year and last. Petrol consumption remained 10 per cent lower in July when compared to July last year.