Domestic basket declines 22 cents

India's crude oil basket fell to $60.00 (Rs 2,653 ) a barrel Friday, down 22 cents from a day earlier, the petroleum and natural gas ministry said today.

The Indian basket comprises Oman-Dubai sour grade crude and Brent dated sweet crude in 58:42 ratio. Friday, Brent crude closed at $60.93 per barrel, up 1 cent from Thursday. Dubai benchmark was down 35 cents per barrel to $59.25, while Oman stood at $59.50, down 40 cents, the data said.

Crude oil for April delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed at$60.05 a barrel Friday, down 41 cents, as prices came under pressure on forecasts of above-average temperature in the US northeast.

In February, the Indian basket had averaged $56.53 per barrel compared with $52.53 in January.