New Delhi: Petrol and diesel prices in India, on the downtrend since mid-October, are now dropping by bigger margins of 30-40 paise every day with the fall of crude oil rates and the rise of the exchange rate. The price of petrol was cut by 35 paise today and that of diesel by 41 paise. Yesterday, the prices of petrol and diesel were lowered by 59 paise and 46 paise, respectively. A litre of petrol now costs ₹ 74.49 in Delhi, ₹ 80.03 in Mumbai, ₹ 75.08 in Bengaluru, ₹ 77.32 in Chennai and ₹ 76.47 in Kolkata.

Diesel costs ₹ 69.29 per litre in Delhi, ₹ 72.56 in Mumbai, ₹ 73.20 in Chennai, ₹ 69.65 in Bengaluru and ₹ 71.14 in Kolkata. Earlier petrol, diesel prices were falling down by 15-20 paise daily on an average but the daily loss has accelerated to 30-40 paise now.

5 things to know about petrol, diesel price today:

1. In Delhi, petrol prices are back to where they were towards the end of April while diesel is hovering around its June levels. Petrol and diesel prices had peaked on October 4. Petrol was selling for ₹ 84 in Delhi and ₹ 91.34 in Mumbai while diesel was at 75.45 in Delhi and ₹ 80.10 in Mumbai.

2. The rate of descent of diesel prices has been slower than petrol, making the latter relatively expensive than the former in some states like Goa, Gujarat and Odisha. Across major cities, the price gap between the two fuels have narrowed down to single digits in the last few months.

3. Crude oil prices remain under pressure with Brent crude below $60 per barrel amid weak fundamentals and struggling financial markets. Front-month Brent crude oil futures were trading at $59.23 per barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $50.53 per barrel.

4. Given the outlook for crude oil, petrol and diesel prices are likely to go down further in the next few days. Crude rates has lost nearly 23% since October and is now at its lowest in more than a year over worries about oversupply and the Sino-US trade war. A supply cut by OPEC can however reverse the price trend.

5. Rupee, which had crossed 74 in October, is now trading below 71 against the US dollar. A strong rupee makes oil imports cheaper for India.

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