By Nidhi Verma
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Indian state fuel retailers will raise petrol and diesel pump prices by 0.8 rupees ($0.0105) per litre from Tuesday, the first increase since November, two dealers told Reuters late on Monday.
The dealers, who declined to identified, said they had received information from oil companies about the retail price for Tuesday. The memo on the new prices was reviewed by Reuters.
India’s three state-run fuel retailers – Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum Corp and Hindustan Petroleum Corp – dominate fuel retailing in India, and tend to move their prices together.
The companies could not be reached for comment outside normal working hours.
The latest price increase means consumers will pay less than 1% more at the pump, despite a substantial increase in global oil prices since the conflict in Ukraine began last month, and a falling Indian rupee.
A litre of petrol in Delhi will cost 96.21 rupees and diesel will be sold at 87.47 rupees on Tuesday. One of the dealers said there could be a regular increase in pump prices.
Indian state-run oil companies have not raised prices since Nov. 4, a move observers said had aided Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in crucial state assembly elections.
India, the world’s third biggest oil importer and consumer, ships in about 85% of its oil needs from overseas markets.
Its local diesel and petrol prices are linked to international prices of the two fuels, which directionally follow increases in crude oil prices.
($1 = 76.1850 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Nidhi Verma; Editing by Jan Harvey)
