However, aviation fuel and commercial gas prices continue to reflect earlier volatility caused by the disruption in the energy supply chain due to the ongoing West Asia conflict.

The anxiety among investors over the Strait of Hormuz blockade and the global fuel shortage has spilt over into fuel prices and is reflected in oil prices worldwide since the Middle East conflict began on 28 February. As of 10:00 AM, retail fuel prices in major cities of India remained stable, as the government stepped in to curb inflation.

Check petrol prices in your city on 17 April

Check diesel prices in your city on 17 April

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee rose against other Asian peers after the Reserve Bank of India report urged state-owned oil refiners to route their dollar purchases through a special credit facility. The rupee gained as much as 0.5% to 92.7738 per dollar on Friday.

"The news of the RBI asking state refiners to buy dollars using a special window instead of in the market has led to dollar/rupee opening lower," Bloomberg quoted the head of treasury at RBL Bank Ltd, Anshul Chandak. He added, "The optimism around the extension of US-Iran talks is also supporting."

According to a Reuters report, the central bank asked refiners to tap a special credit line for their foreign exchange requirements through the country's largest lender, the State Bank of India. The RBI instructed lenders to limit their onshore open positions to $100 million and, at the same time, barred them from offering non-deliverable forward contracts to clients.

With Indian Oil Corp, Hindustan Petroleum Corp, and Bharat Petroleum Corp among the biggest dollar buyers in the currency market to pay for their crude oil imports, the RBI encouraged refiners to route their dollar purchases through SBI rather than multiple banks.

After the Iran war broke out, the rupee hit successive lows versus the dollar, but has recovered some losses after the central bank took measures to prevent speculation in the currency market.

Brent Crude and gold price today

On Friday morning, Brent Crude traded at $98.12, down $1.27 (-1.28%). Similarly, Crude Oil plunged to $93.41, down USD 1.28 (-1.35 per cent), signalling a bearish trend for the session. Meanwhile, gold continued its bullish run, trading at $4,795.95, up by $7.43 ( 0.16%).

Indian equity benchmarks opened in the red on Friday amid mixed global cues, reflecting cautious investor sentiment. The NSE NIFTY 50 opened at 24,162.20 points at 9:17 AM, marking a decline of 34.55 points or 0.14%, while BSE SENSEX was down by 34.55 points or 0.14% and stood at 77,947.66 points.