Crude oil prices have surged over 3% to $109.26 per barrel for Brent and $105 per barrel for WTI, with futures trading at ₹10,073 per barrel on Friday. According to Kotak Securities, crude oil prices gained steam with Brent climbing to $108 per barrel and WTI trading near $105, headed for weekly gains of more than 6%. The surge is driven by deepening concerns over supply disruptions linked to the ongoing US-Iran conflict that began on February 28, 2026. The Strait of Hormuz remains a key flashpoint with limited tanker movement amid vessel attacks, seizures and the ongoing US naval blockade around Iranian ports, reinforcing fears that global energy supply disruptions could drag longer.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has warned that oil markets could remain severely undersupplied through October, even if geopolitical tensions ease in the coming months. According to the latest IEA data, global oil supply contracted by a cumulative 12.8 mb/d between February and April 2026, with April output falling to just 95.1 mb/d—a multi-year low. A significant portion of this decline stems from the Gulf region, where key producers including Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain collectively shut in 10.5 mb/d of production in April alone as storage constraints and logistical bottlenecks intensified. The IEA's warning comes as falling inventories and disrupted crude flows have added to bullish sentiment, with analysts noting that the latest outlooks from OPEC, the IEA, and the US Energy Information Administration highlight growing uncertainty around the 2026 oil-market balance.
Petrol and diesel prices have been increased by ₹3 per litre across major Indian cities, as reported by NDTV Profit. The price revision comes as oil marketing companies face significant financial pressure due to the ongoing rally in global oil rates caused by Middle East conflict. According to the report, this marks another round of fuel price adjustments as the industry continues to grapple with cost pressures. The latest price hikes apply to both the regular petrol and diesel variants and the premium and high-octane products, with the regular variant of petrol now priced at ₹97.77 per litre in Delhi and diesel at ₹90.67 per litre, up from ₹94.77 and ₹87.67 respectively.
State-owned oil firms are incurring daily losses of ₹1,600-1,700 crore due to the ongoing crisis, as reported by NDTV Profit. Over the past 10 weeks, these losses have accumulated to more than ₹1 lakh crore. Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri stated on Tuesday that public sector oil marketing companies may not be able to sustain daily losses of ₹1,000 crore from selling petrol and diesel below market price. The RBI Governor also indicated that if the current situation continues, it is only a matter of time before the government passes on some of the price increases.
According to NDTV Profit, petrol prices have increased across major metro cities with Delhi witnessing an increase of ₹3, taking the retail price to ₹97.77 per litre. In Kolkata, petrol prices rose by ₹3.29 to ₹108.74 per litre, while Mumbai saw a hike of ₹3.14, pushing rates to ₹106.68 per litre. Chennai recorded a ₹2.83 increase, with petrol now retailing at ₹103.67 per litre. For diesel, Delhi rates were hiked by ₹3 to ₹90.67 per litre, Kolkata saw a ₹3.11 increase to ₹95.13 per litre, and Mumbai recorded a similar ₹3.11 hike to ₹93.14 per litre.
As reported by NDTV Profit, current petrol prices across major cities include ₹110.85 per litre in Hyderabad and ₹115.66 per litre in Bengaluru. Diesel prices vary with ₹98.96 per litre in Hyderabad and ₹94.1 per litre in Bengaluru. The price differences reflect regional tax structures and local market conditions across different states, with India maintaining some of the lowest fuel prices globally despite recent increases.
