New Delhi, May 28: After hitting a high of $84.47 on May 14, the brent crude oil prices have plummeted by nearly $9 over the past fortnight. The price on Monday slipped to $75.13, which analysts have linked to the decision taken by Russia, Saudi Arabia and United States of America to increase their fuel outputs.

With the fresh slump in crude oil rate, market experts claim the prices of petrol and diesel in India should go down. While New Delhi was quick to increment the fuel charge when the international rate went up, it is expected to exhibit a similar market-volatility for lowering the prices.

The drop in crude oil rate came after Saudi Arabia, the de facto leader of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) and Russia, another top producer, mutually agreed to increase their outputs by nearly 1 million barrels per day.

"Crude oil prices collapsed ... after reports emerged that Saudi Arabia and Russia had agreed to increase crude oil production in the second-half of the year to make up for losses elsewhere under the production cut agreement," said a statement issued by the ANZ Bank.

Meanwhile, the fuel prices continued to surge in India on a 15th consecutive day in a row, with the petrol now costing Rs 86.08 per litre in Mumbai, whereas, the cost of Diesel per litre in Hyderabad has climbed to Rs 75.18. For list of rates in all Indian cities, read here.

India's Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, while addressing the press on the surging fuel rates in the past week, said the government is forced to hike the prices due to the jump in the global crude oil rate. "The rallying international price has led to the current hike. We are considering alternative options to provide relief to the people," he had said, indicating a cut in excise and other duties.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 28, 2018 11:24 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).