The Delhi government announced that it would be reducing Value Added Tax on petrol from 30% to 19.4% on Tuesday, which will see prices plunge by ₹8. Currently the price of petrol in the national capital is ₹ 103.97 per litre while diesel rates stand at ₹ 86.67 per litre. The new price change will come into effect by midnight today.
Oil prices across the world rose by 2% due to some cautious optimism that the Omicron variant of Covid-19 may not be as severe as prophesied. However, travel bans and the risk of fresh lockdowns have prompted markets to remain in a state of speculation as it could mean losses.
In a relief for Indian consumers, petrol and diesel prices remained static for 27 consecutive days since the Central Government announced a cut on excise prices which brought down the steadily rising cost of petrol and diesel. State-run oil refiners such as Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum revise the fuel rates on a daily basis, by taking into account the crude oil prices in the international markets, and the rupee-dollar exchange rates.
Brent crude futures rose $1.90, or 2.7 per cent, to $71.13 a barrel, after a 3.9 per cent slump on Tuesday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose $1.71, or 2.6 per cent, to $67.89 a barrel, after a 5.4 per cent drop on Tuesday.