Pankaj Jain, Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has hinted that the prices of petrol and diesel may be reduced if the price of crude oil remains persistently low across the world for a little longer. Oil companies may consider reducing the rates of petrol and diesel if the crude oil remains low for an extended period, hinted Jain.
The Petroleum Secretary also said that government is mulling removal of windfall tax, stating that India’s oil ministry is in talks with the finance ministry regarding the same.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures settled at their lowest level since December 2021 on Tuesday, after OPEC+ revised down its demand forecast for this year and 2025, offsetting supply concerns from Tropical Storm Francine, reported Reuters.
Brent crude futures settled down $2.65, or 3.69%, at $69.19 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude settled down $2.96, or 4.31%, to $65.75 a barrel.
Both benchmarks dropped by more than $3 during the session, after each rose by about 1% on Monday. WTI crude futures fell more than 5% on Tuesday, hitting their lowest levels since May 2023.
On Tuesday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in a monthly report said world oil demand would rise by 2.03 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024, down from last month’s forecast for growth of 2.11 million bpd.
Until last month, OPEC had kept the forecast unchanged since it was first made in July 2023.
OPEC also cut its 2025 global demand growth estimate to 1.74 million bpd from 1.78 million bpd. Prices slid on the weakening global demand prospects and expectations of oil oversupply.
