New Delhi: Airlines and restaurants woke up to higher fuel bills on Thursday. State-owned oil marketing companies raised aviation turbine fuel by Rs 16 per litre, and commercial LPG by Rs 62.50 per 19-kg cylinder, citing firmer international benchmarks.
For domestic airlines, ATF now costs Rs 137 a litre, up from Rs 121. That’s a big jump on its own, and it lands on top of two earlier increases. September brought a Rs 6.28 hike, or 5.46 per cent, and August added Rs 5. Three months of rising prices, then, with the latest the sharpest by far.
It matters because fuel is one of the largest line items for carriers. ATF accounts for up to 40 per cent of an airline’s operating costs. Whether airlines absorb the increase or pass it on through fares is the open question, and nothing in the announcement settles it. Festival-season demand might give them room to raise fares. It might not.
The LPG move is smaller in percentage terms but hits a different crowd: hotels, restaurants, caterers. In Delhi, a 19-kg cylinder now costs Rs 2,810, up from Rs 2,747.50, about 2.3 per cent. Prices differ by state because of local taxes like VAT.
The recent history is choppy. Commercial LPG rose by Rs 1,373 between February and June, from Rs 1,740.50 to Rs 3,113.50, then fell by Rs 183.50 in July and Rs 192 in August. September brought a small Rs 9.50 increase. Thursday’s hike continues that upward drift, though prices remain well below the June peak.
Households are untouched. Domestic LPG stays at Rs 942 for a 14.2-kg cylinder in Delhi, and petrol and diesel prices are unchanged.
Commercial LPG rates are revised on the first of each month, based on international benchmark prices and exchange rates. So the next revision is due on November 1, and the direction will depend on what global prices and the rupee do in the meantime.
