Joy in the time of recession; petrol prices to come down?

New Delhi, Aug 9: In what can be termed as good news in times of such global market slump and a possible recession looming in the horizon, there could be lowering of petrol prices in India. The ray of hope was provided by Petroleum Minister S. Jaipal Reddy when he said that if global crude oil prices continue to slip further, petrol prices are likely to come down.

Reddy commented, "If the prices globally come down sharply and in a stable way, naturally the prices of petrol would be adjusted downwards." The petrol prices have recently been de-regulated resulting in oil companies pricing the fuel according to the retail market on par with the global movement of crude. This had resulted in the sharp hike in the petrol prices.

The other fuels like diesel, kerosene and cooking gas are still held tight under government control. The last major hike in petrol prices was in June when the global crude oil prices shot up.

Following the US's downgrade of sovereign debt rating and fears of another double-dip recession, oil prices have been witnessing a sharp decline. Crude oil barrel prices were around $80 a barrel at the Multi-Commodity Exchange Tuesday afternoon.

The lowering of the petrol prices could ease the inflation worries that have been troubling policymakers for close to two years.

OneIndia News