"International market is volatile and we need a proper pricing policy (for a stable pricing regime)," Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar said on Tuesday.
Petrol and diesel prices have not been reduced for six weeks now despite international fuel prices falling $3-4 a barrel. Such a fall would have warranted Rs 2-3 per litre cut in domestic retail prices.
Aiyar said international oil prices had been rising for the most part of 2004 and had only started declining in the last two weeks. "So we will have to wait for prices to stabalise."
He said petrol and diesel were freed from administrative control when the international prices were stable and not as volatile as in 2004. "So import price parity (aligning domestic prices with movements in international prices) at the moment cannot take place."
Aiyar said Ashok Lahiri committee, appointed by the Finance Ministry to look at restructuring duties on crude oil and petroleum products for insulating domestic market from international volatilities, had yet to submit its reports and the new pricing policy would come only after its recommendations had been considered.