Petrol and diesel prices remained steady in major Indian cities amid the Middle East conflict, which appeared to show signs of de-escalation on Monday.
The Middle East conflict, now in its fourth week, was set to escalate further as US President Donald Trump threatened strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure over the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
But on Monday, Trump maintained that talks between Washington and Tehran were ongoing and announced that he would delay strikes against Iran’s power plants.
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Although Iran has officially denied that the talks have taken place, reports citing Iranian officials indicate that some communication is taking place between Washington and Tehran as a precursor to talks on ending the conflict that has rocked global oil markets in the past few weeks due to the effective shutdown of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for global energy trade.
As a result, oil prices have soared globally, with Brent rising from around $70 at the end of February to $108 on Monday.
However, after Trump’s hints of de-escalation, the price of Brent oil fell below $100 and then rose to $103.
This means that despite considerable volatility in the international oil market, petrol and diesel prices for general customers in India have remained unchanged, although there have been some changes in the price of industrial diesel and premium petrol.
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Industrial diesel, premium gasoline have become more expensive
With rising international oil prices piling pressure on margins, India’s state-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) hiked the price of industrial diesel and premium petrol on Friday.
Industrial diesel, which is sold in bulk to commercial facilities, saw a rise in prices ₹21.92 liters – a substantial increase of 25%, while the price of premium petrol increased by ₹2 liters.
Regular prices of gasoline and diesel
The regular prices of petrol and diesel, which make up a significant part of the day’s sales at the pumps, remained unchanged.
India’s three major oil marketing companies (OMCs) – Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) – revise prices every day at 6 am to ensure rates are in line with international oil prices and exchange rate movements.
Below are the petrol and diesel prices in major Indian cities on Tuesday, March 24.
CityGasoline ( ₹ /L)Diesel ( ₹ /L)Delhi ₹94.77 ₹87.67 Bombay ₹103.54 ₹90.03 Calcutta ₹105.45 ₹92.02 Chennai ₹100.84 ₹92.39 Hyderabad ₹107.46 ₹95.70 Bengaluru ₹102.96 ₹90.99 Lucknow ₹94.69 ₹87.81 Ahmedabad ₹94.49 ₹90.17Read also | Iran US News Live: Will Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates join the war with Iran? What the report reveals
Factors Affecting Petrol and Diesel Prices in India
Petrol and diesel prices in India are affected by several factors, the most significant of which is the price of crude oil in the global markets.
The rupee-to-dollar exchange rate also plays an important role in determining the price of petrol and diesel, given that India imports a large portion of its oil needs. Simply put, a weaker rupee can increase the cost of imported oil, thereby increasing domestic fuel prices, or vice versa.
The third factor is taxes imposed by the Center and state governments, which form a major component of petrol and diesel prices and are responsible for fuel price fluctuations between states.
Final prices of petrol and diesel in India are also affected by supply and demand dynamics and logistics costs.
