The caretaker government on Wednesday hiked the price of petrol by Rs13.55 per litre. The new price of petrol has now reached Rs272.89/litre effective from February 1.

The price of high speed diesel (HSD) was increased by Rs2.75 per litre and the new price stands at Rs278.96 per litre.

Earlier, reports had claimed that prices of petroleum products could see a massive increase from February 1, due to changes in the international price of oil as well as charges over import of oil.

A report claimed that the price of petrol could be increased by upto Rs9 per litre while the diesel price was expected to increase by upto Rs6.

In the international market, oil prices fell on Wednesday, pressured by low economic activity in leading crude importer China and a surprise build in US crude inventories as producers ramped up output following frigid weather earlier this month, Reuters reported.

Prices were also pressured after US Energy Information Administration data showed weekly crude inventories rose by 1.2 million barrels last week, compared with analysts’ expectations for a 217,000 barrel draw.

Brent crude futures for March, which expire on Wednesday, fell $1.13, or about 1.4%, to $81.74 a barrel. The more actively traded April contract was down $1.92, or about 2.3%, at $80.58.

US West Texas Intermediate crude futures lost $1.95, or roughly 2.5%, to $75.87. Both benchmarks fell by more than $2 a barrel earlier in the session.