On November 1, the price of commercial liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders was cut by Rs 115.50. A 19kg commercial LPG cylinder is now selling for Rs 1,744 in the capital.

This is the first time the price of commercial LPG cylinders has fluctuated since the Oil Marketing Corporation (OMC) last raised prices in May. OMC usually announces LPG price changes at the beginning and middle of each month.

The price of a 14.2kg domestic LPG cylinder was unchanged and now stands at Rs 1,053, according to a price notice from the state-owned fuel retailer.

The price of a 19kg commercial cylinder is now Rs 1,846 in Kolkata, Rs 1,696 in Mumbai and Rs 1,893 in Chennai. Meanwhile, CNBC Awaaz reported that OMC may also cut gasoline and diesel prices by 40 paise starting November 1.

According to the report, oil prices could fall by as much as 40 paise a day for the next five days. This will lower the price of petrol and diesel by Rs 2 in instalments.

Indian Oil Corporation on October 29 had reported a net loss of Rs 272.35 crore for the July-September quarter (Q2), despite booking over Rs 10,800 crore of government LPG subsidy, for selling petrol and diesel below cost.

According to a company filing with the stock exchange, the net loss was Rs 272.35 crore, compared with a profit of Rs 6,360.05 crore for July-September 2021.

The drop was due to a loss of Rs 1,992.53 crore in the previous quarter to June. It was the first time the IOC recorded two consecutive quarters of losses as it sold gasoline, diesel and natural gas (LPG) below cost.

The International Olympic Committee and other state-owned fuel retailers posted huge losses in the first quarter of this fiscal year and did not adjust prices for gasoline, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas to help the government rein in runaway inflation.

The three companies were supposed to adjust petrol and diesel prices daily based on cost, but haven’t adjusted their rates for six and a half months – the longest rate freeze since fuel prices were deregulated.