Petrol and diesel prices remained unchanged on Monday, 18 October, after increasing for four consecutive days as oil marketing companies (OMC) decided to pause to see developments in the global oil market before taking the next step.
Accordingly, the price of petrol in Delhi remained Rs 105.84 a litre and Rs 111.77 per litre in Mumbai, according to a price notification of state-owned fuel retailers.
In Mumbai, diesel rates also remained static at Rs 102.52 a litre; while in Delhi it costs Rs 94.57, the same as Sunday.
The pause has come after it rose for four straight days where prices of both petrol and diesel rose by Rs 1.40 paise per litre. There was no change in rates also on 12 and 13 October.
Diesel prices have increased on 19 out of the last 24 days taking up its retail price by Rs 5.95 per litre in Delhi.
With diesel price rising sharply, the fuel is now available at over Rs 100 a litre in several parts of the country. This dubious distinction was earlier available to petrol that had crossed Rs 100 a litre mark across the country a few months earlier.
Petrol prices had maintained stability since 5 September but oil companies finally raised its pump prices last week and this week given a spurt in the product prices lately. Petrol prices have also risen on 16 of the previous 20 days taking up its pump price by Rs 4.65 per litre.
Crude price has been on a surge rising over three year high level of over $85.7 a barrel now. Since 5 September, when both petrol and diesel prices were revised, the price of petrol and diesel in the international market is higher by around $9-10 per barrel as compared to average prices during August.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)