India's oil import bill to jump by 1.82 lakh crore on ₹ woes

New Delhi: India's crude oil import bill is likely to jump by about USD 26 billion in 2018-19 as rupee dropping to a record low has made buying of oil from overseas costlier, government officials said on Thursday.

Besides, the rupee hitting a record low of 70.32 to a US dollar in the opening deal on Thursday will also lead to a hike in the retail selling price of petrol, diesel and cooking gas (LPG).

India, which imports over 80 per cent of its oil needs, spent USD 87.7 billion (Rs 5.65 lakh crore) on importing 220.43 million tonne (MT) of crude oil in 2017-18. For 2018-19, the imports are pegged at almost 227 MT.

"We at the beginning of the financial year estimated that crude oil import bill would be around USD 108 billion (Rs 7.02 lakh crore) at an average crude oil price of USD 65 per barrel and exchange rate of Rs 65 per dollar," an official said.

But the exchange rate has been at an average of Rs 67.6 till August 14. If the rupee is to stay around 70 per dollar for the rest of the ongoing fiscal, the oil import bill will be USD 114 billion, he said.

But this would result in a rise in petrol and diesel prices, with full impact likely to be visible later this month.