Tax on petrol, diesel increased in this state - Check new rates of fuel

In a major development, the Meghalaya government has increased taxes on petrol and diesel from Wednesday amid the nationwide lockdown and plunging crude oil prices. A litre of petrol now costs Rs 74.9 while price of diesel becomes Rs 67.5. "The new rate of tax for petrol is 31 per cent or Rs 17.6 per litre and 22.5 per cent for diesel or Rs 12.5 per litre," a government notification said. According to the officials, 2 per cent sales tax surcharge will also be levied on both petrol and diesel.
 
Earlier, US oil prices in futures trade turned negative on Monday for the time in history. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery shed more than 300 per cent to settle at -37.63 USD per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. What it means is that oil producers are paying the buyers to take the commodity off their stocks amid fears that storage capacity could run out in May, the BBC reported. With the COVID-19 induced lockdown restricting movement across the world, demand for oil has all but dried up.
 
The US light crude West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for May at New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) was trading at -35.34 USD per barrel, down by -53.61 USD per barrel from the last closing of $18.27 per barrel. However, May delivery contract of WTI at NYMEX plunged to -40.32 USD per barrel during the trade on Monday. However, WTI for delivery in June was trading at $21.09 per barrel, down 15.74 per cent from previous session, after plunging to $20.23 per barrel. Similarly, the London benchmark Brent crude for delivery in June was trading at $26.01 per barrel, 7.73 per cent down from the previous session at Intercontinental Exchange (ICE).
 
The price of oil has now reached a point that it is increasingly becoming difficult for higher cost producers to remain in operation and rather look at declaring bankruptcy. A lot of US shale producers are in deep trouble and analysts expect that low oil price for few more months will result in a spate of bankruptcies in US.