Petrol to cost 75p more, diesel 50p

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Weakening Of Rupee Against Dollar To Hit Refiners Hard, Make Imports Costlier

New Delhi: State-run fuel retailers on Friday raised prices of petrol and diesel as the rupee touched 10-month low against the Greenback to pinch refiners hard by making oil imports costlier. But the price of non-subsidized cooking gas was reduced as the fall in the fuel's global price more than offset the Indian currency's weakness. 
    Petrol price has been raised by 75 paise per litre and diesel by 50 paise, excluding state levies. After including sales tax or VAT, the actual increase in pump prices would be 90 paise a litre for petrol, and 56 paise for diesel in Delhi. The rates would vary in accordance with tax rates in each state. 
    The price of non-subsidized cooking gas, which consumers buy at market rate after using up their nine subsidized cylinders a year, was reduced by Rs 45 a cylinder as the fall in the fuel's global rates more than offset the rupee's weakness. Each non-subsidized cylinder of 14.2 kg in Delhi would cost Rs 802 against Rs 847 at present. 
    The new prices would come into effect from the intervening midnight of Friday and Saturday. 
    The increase in petrol price reverses the trend since March, and is the first hike in three months. Petrol price was last raised on March 1 and reduced four times since then, aggregating nearly Rs 7 a litre, on falling global prices and a steady rupee. 
    It is, however, the fifth upward revision for diesel and the trend is likely to continue through the year as the gap between its retail price and market rate still remains at Rs 4.87 per litre. 
    In January, the government had allowed state fuel retailers the freedom to raise pump price in small doses of 40-50 paise a litre every month till the gap, which the government subsidizes, is wiped out. 
    Diesel price was last hiked by 90 paisa a litre on May 11 to cover the two rounds of revisions that the companies skipped on the oil ministry's informal directive issued to avoid voters' backlash during the Karnataka polls. 
    "Prices of petrol were last revised downwards on May 1 by Rs 2.50 per litre (excluding state levies). The current increase is required mainly due to depreciation of rupee from Rs 54.26 to a dollar to Rs 55.32," the country's largest fuel retailer IndianOil said in a statement. "In addition to diesel, oil marketing companies continue to suffer underrecovery (loss) on sale of kerosene of Rs 27.75 per litre and LPG of Rs 334.50 per cylinder," the statement added.