On January 17, the price of India’s crude oil basket (COB) was at $85.6 per barrel; that number is higher than the monthly average COB since September 2014.
Brent crude prices – it is the international benchmark for crude oil prices in the world – breached the $87 level on January 18, touching the highest point since 2014. Goldman Sachs expects crude prices to breach the psychological barrier of $100 per barrel in the third quarter, Bloomberg News reported.
These developments will be watched with concern in both the finance ministry and RBI. The former must be busy giving final touches to the 2022-23 Union Budget and the latter will see Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) members huddling together a week after the Budget has been presented.
