PSU OMCs slide on rising crude oil prices

Shares of three public sector oil marketing companies fell by 0.52% to 1.02% at 11:05 IST on BSE as crude oil prices edged higher.

HPCL (down 1.02%), BPCL (down 0.60%) and Indian Oil Corporation (down 0.52%), edged lower.

The S&P BSE Sensex was up 7.56 points, or 0.04% at 21,201.14.

US crude oil traded above $100 a barrel after government data showed US crude stockpiles fell more than expected to the lowest level since September.

US crude oil futures for February 2014 delivery were up 6 cents at $100.38 a barrel in the electronic trading today, 30 December 2013.

Crude inventories dropped by 4.73 million barrels last week amid an increase in refinery operations, the Energy Information Administration said in a report on 27 December 2013.

Public sector oil marketing companies (PSU OMCs) suffer under-recoveries on domestic sale of diesel, LPG and kerosene at controlled prices. In January 2013, the government allowed PSU OMCs to raise diesel prices in small measures at regular intervals while completely deregulating diesel prices sold to institutional or bulk buyers. The government has already freed pricing of petrol.

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