Breaking the string of reductions, the state-owned oil firms today raisedjet fuel or ATF prices marginally by Rs 158 per kilolitre on an average.

Aviation turbine fuel (ATF) will cost Rs 27,275 per kl in Delhi from midnighttonight against Rs 27,106 per kl, an Indian Oil Corporation official said.Priorto this, the public sector oil firms had reduced jet fuel prices 11 times sinceSeptember last year. The oil firms had raised ATF prices by 3.3 per cent onlyonce on January 16.

In Mumbai, home to the nation's busiest airport, ATF rates were raised to Rs28,023 per kl from Rs 27,861 per kl. The increase in jet fuel prices announcedtoday varied from airport to airport depending on local taxes and levies and anon average worked out to be Rs 158 per kl.

ATF prices had peaked to Rs 71,028.26 per kl (in Delhi) in August oninternational crude prices touching historic high of $147 a barrel. But theyhave since been slashed every month till October and twice in November but evenafter the latest price rise, jet fuel is still lower than diesel rates.

Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum revise ATFrates on the 1st and 16th of every month based on the average international jetfuel rates in the preceding fortnight.