The Centre is keeping a close watch on crude prices as any flare-up on account of the Ukraine standoff will impact the prices at retail outlets.
The price of futures contract for Brent crude oil with April delivery on London’s ICE rose 4.18 per cent to $99.38 per barrel on Tuesday morning before paring some gains to settle just above $96. The last time Brent exceeded $99 per barrel was in September 2014.
“It is difficult to say how crude prices will go. Even today, in FSDC, when we were looking at the challenges which are posed for financial stability, crude was one of the things… all these are headwinds,” finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in Mumbai.
