ISLAMABAD (The Thursday Times) — The government has raised the price of petrol by Rs1.54 a litre and high-speed diesel by Rs2.16, taking petrol to Rs379.25 and diesel to Rs395.82 from Tuesday, October 27, according to a Petroleum Division notification issued on Monday.
Petrol had been selling at Rs377.71 a litre and diesel at Rs393.66. Last week, on October 22, petrol was cut by Rs2.71 while diesel rose by 31 paisa.
Taxes and duties still make up Rs114 of the price of every litre of petrol and Rs100 of every litre of diesel.
Supply worries
The increase follows days of concern over fuel supplies. On Friday, the Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association urged consumers not to resort to panic buying, warning that excessive purchases could distort the market.
The same day, senators raised concerns over fuel supply even after Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Bilal Azhar Kayani told them there were no supply issues. Pakistan Peoples Party senator Sherry Rehman questioned whether petrol would be available in December, and Opposition Leader Raja Nasir Abbas warned of a bleak situation as tensions rise in the Middle East.
On Monday, US Chargé d’Affaires Natalie A. Baker praised Pakistan for avoiding a fuel shortage despite the conflict, during talks with Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik on long-term energy supply contracts.
Daily pricing
Fuel prices are set daily by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) on the basis of international market trends. The government revised prices weekly from early March, then moved to daily pricing on July 17 as renewed hostilities between Iran and the United States kept global oil markets volatile.
Still far above pre-war levels
Diesel stood at Rs281 a litre before the US-Iran war began on February 28 and peaked at Rs520.35 on April 3. Petrol rose from Rs266 in early March to a high of Rs458.41 on the same day.
To ease the burden, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced a relief scheme on September 13 for users of motorcycles, rickshaws and cars of up to 800cc. The government has also brought back austerity measures, requiring markets to close by 9pm and cutting fuel allocations for official vehicles by half for three months.
