Government cuts petrol by Rs6 and diesel by Rs6.8 per litre

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has reduced the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel, bringing petrol down by Rs6 per litre and high-speed diesel by Rs6.8 per litre, according to a Petroleum Division press release issued on Friday.

The revised rates will take effect from May 23. Following the latest cut, petrol will be sold at Rs403.78 per litre, while high-speed diesel will cost Rs402.78 per litre.

New rates take effect from May 23

The Petroleum Division said the reduction had been notified through an official press release. The latest adjustment comes after a period of frequent weekly revisions in petroleum prices announced on Friday nights.

Petrol is widely used by private vehicle owners, small transport operators, rickshaws and motorcyclists, making its price particularly significant for middle- and lower-middle-income households. High-speed diesel, meanwhile, is mainly consumed by heavy transport and large generators.

Recent price changes

Last week, the government had increased petrol prices by Rs6.51 per litre and high-speed diesel prices by Rs19.39 per litre. The latest reduction partially reverses that increase.

The government began revising petroleum prices every week on Friday night after the now-paused US-Israeli war on Iran, which it said started on February 28. The conflict was also linked to a global fuel shortage following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a route through which one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas supply used to pass during peacetime.

Background to the fuel pricing cycle

After the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran, the government initially raised petrol and diesel prices by Rs55 per litre on March 6 and announced what were described as unprecedented austerity measures on March 9.

In the weeks that followed, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said he had turned down recommendations to increase fuel prices on three occasions despite a rise in international market rates.

However, on April 2, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb announced an unprecedented increase of 43 per cent in petrol prices and 55pc in high-speed diesel prices. The two ministers also announced a targeted fuel subsidy programme.

A day later, Prime Minister Shehbaz reduced the petroleum levy by Rs80 per litre, which brought the petrol price down to Rs378 per litre. On April 10, he further lowered diesel and petrol prices by Rs135 per litre and Rs12 per litre, respectively.

The latest reduction comes amid continued adjustments in domestic fuel prices in response to recent market developments and earlier policy decisions announced by the government.