Oil companies raise fuel prices

State-run fuel retailers have ended the 82-day freeze on daily rate revision by raising pump prices of petrol and diesel by Rs 1.20 per litre in just two days since Sunday because of a surge in international oil prices after the producers’ cartel decided to extend record output cuts by one more month till the end of July.

Brent crude was trading at $41.39 a barrel on Monday, 114% higher than its low of $19.33 seen on April 21, 2020. However, retail prices of fuel did not fall in India with lower prices of crude because the government hiked levies and kept prices more or less the same.

Retail prices of petrol and diesel were first raised by 60 paise a litre each on Sunday followed by similar hikes on Monday.