Petrol, diesel prices soar to all-time high, hiked 16-times in May

New Delhi: Auto fuel rates continued to surge unabated for the sixteenth time in May as state-run retailers hiked petrol prices by 29 paise per litre and diesel by 26 paise a litre on Monday.

Petrol is now costlier by ₹3.83 per litre and diesel ₹4.42 a litre across the country since May 4, a day after results of five assembly polls were declared.

While petrol and diesel are being sold at record rates across the country, Mumbai has the highest rates among metros.

Petrol is currently sold at ₹100.47 per litre in the financial capital and diesel at ₹92.45. Pump prices of petrol and diesel in Delhi on Monday also made a new record of ₹94.23 per litre and ₹85.15 a litre, respectively.

While fuel rates in Delhi are the benchmark for the entire country, retail prices of the two fuels differ from place to place because of variations in state taxes and local levies.

Surging international oil rates and exorbitant domestic tax structure are the two key reasons for high rates of petrol and diesel in pumps.

According to executives working in state-run oil marketing companies, pump prices are also high because companies were recovering their past revenue losses like the one suffered for 66 days since February 27 when rates were not raised because of assembly elections in four states and one Union Territory.