The federal government on Tuesday reduced the price of petrol by Rs1.70 per litre and High-Speed Diesel (HSD) by Rs3.12 per litre, with the new rates taking effect from Wednesday, Sept 23.
Petrol will now be sold at Rs392.05 per litre, down from Rs393.75, while the price of HSD has fallen to Rs418.96 per litre from Rs422.08.
The Petroleum Division issued a notification confirming the revised prices. The government continues to charge Rs114 per litre in taxes and duties on petrol and Rs100 per litre on diesel.
The latest reduction comes after fuel prices rose sharply earlier this year. HSD had reached Rs520.35 per litre on April 3 after rising from Rs281 per litre following the outbreak of the United states (US)-Iran war on February 28. Petrol also reached its peak of Rs458.41 per litre on April 3 after its price began increasing from Rs266 in the first week of March.
The government has also reintroduced austerity measures in response to rising fuel prices amid the ongoing Middle East conflict. Under the measures, markets must close by 9pm, while fuel allocations for official vehicles have been reduced by 50 percent for three months.
Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif announced a relief scheme on Sept 13 for users of motorcycles, autos and vehicles of up to 800cc to ease the impact of rising global oil prices.
The government has also changed the way it revises fuel prices. Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik announced on July 17 that fuel prices will be fixed daily because of fluctuations in international market prices following renewed hostilities between Iran and the US.
The Petroleum Minister said that the cabinet and the prime minister had decided to give the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) responsibility for determining fuel prices daily based on international market trends.
Before the shift to daily revisions, the government had announced weekly fuel price changes since early March. It had also introduced measures to conserve fuel amid possible oil supply disruptions linked to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
In April, the federal government announced targeted measures to provide subsidised fuel.
Petrol remains widely used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers, making changes in its price significant for the middle and lower-middle classes.
HSD is mainly used in heavy transport, power plants and large generators, so changes in its price also affect the public.
Petrol and HSD also remain the government’s major fuel revenue sources, with monthly sales of around 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes, compared with monthly kerosene demand of about 10,000 tonnes.
