Govt raises petrol price by Rs1.82 per litre, reduces high-speed diesel rate by Re0.91

The government announced on Wednesday that it has raised the price of petrol by Rs1.82 per litre, while decreasing the cost of high-speed diesel by Re0.91 per litre. Consequently, the retail price of petrol is now Rs396.65 per litre, and HSD is priced at Rs394.94 per litre. The government retains a tax rate of Rs114 per litre for petrol and Rs100 per litre for diesel.

The revised prices will commence on October 8 (Thursday). The HSD price has dropped from the April 3 peak of Rs520.35, which had begun to increase from Rs281 per litre following the February 28 Iran-US conflict. The petrol price peaked at Rs458.41 on April 3 after a rise from Rs266 in early March. The government has reintroduced austerity measures to address the surge in fuel prices amid the ongoing Middle East crisis.

These include limiting market hours to 9pm and reducing fuel allocations for official vehicles by 50% for three months. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also unveiled a "relief scheme" for motorcycle, auto, and 800cc vehicle owners to help mitigate the impact of rising global oil prices on September 13. On July 17, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik informed that fuel prices would now be determined daily due to international market price fluctuations following renewed Iran-US tensions.

Prior to this, the government had been announcing weekly price changes since early March, complementing fuel conservation efforts due to potential oil supply disruptions from the Middle East conflict. The federal government had also announced targeted fuel subsidies in April. The prime minister tasked the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) with daily fuel pricing based on international market trends.

Petrol primarily fuels private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws, and two-wheelers, affecting the middle and lower-middle class. Diesel impacts the public large, as it powers heavy transport, power plants, and large generators. Petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) are the main revenue sources, with monthly sales of 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes compared to 10,000 tonnes for kerosene.