The federal government has reduced the price of petrol by Rs0.43 per litre while increasing the price of High-Speed Diesel (HSD) by Rs3.47 per litre, with the revised rates taking effect from Friday, September 18.
Petrol will now be sold at Rs390.79 per litre, while the price of HSD has been set at Rs424.92 per litre. The government continues to charge Rs114 per litre in taxes and duties on petrol and Rs100 per litre on diesel.
According to the Petroleum Division’s notification, the new prices will apply from September 18. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has said that the revision was based on international market prices, premiums and other relevant factors, with changes linked primarily to movements in global petrol and diesel prices.
International oil prices fell by around one percent on Friday, extending losses for a third consecutive session, but remained above $100 a barrel.
Brent crude futures fell $1.01, or 1 percent, to $103.77 a barrel, while United States (US) West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures declined $1.03, or 1 percent, to $100.88 a barrel. Both benchmarks had also fallen by around one percent on Thursday.
The latest revision comes after significant movements in domestic fuel prices in recent months. HSD had reached Rs520.35 per litre on April 3 after rising from Rs281 per litre following the outbreak of the US-Iran war on February 28. Petrol had also reached Rs458.41 per litre on April 3 after starting its rise from Rs266 in the first week of March.
The government has also reintroduced austerity measures in response to higher fuel prices, including requiring markets to close by 9pm and reducing fuel allocations for official vehicles by 50 percent for three months.
On September 13, Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif announced a relief scheme for motorcycles, autos and vehicles of up to 800cc. Under the scheme, owners of two- and three-wheelers are to receive Rs100 per litre in relief on a monthly quota of 20 litres, while owners of vehicles up to 800cc are to receive the same relief on a monthly quota of 30 litres.
The government had shifted to daily fuel price revisions after Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik announced the policy on July 17, citing fluctuations in international market prices following renewed hostilities between Iran and the US. The responsibility for setting the prices was assigned to OGRA based on international market trends.
Before the change, fuel prices had been revised weekly since early March. The government had also introduced fuel conservation measures over concerns about possible oil supply disruptions linked to the conflict in the Middle East and announced targeted subsidised fuel relief in April.
Petrol is mainly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers, while HSD is widely used in heavy transport, power plants and large generators. Petrol and HSD are also major revenue earners, with monthly sales of around 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes, compared with monthly kerosene demand of around 10,000 tonnes.
