By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The government reduced retail prices of petrol and high-speed diesel by 5 rupees a liter, the Petroleum Division said in a notification issued late on Friday.
The new prices, which take effect Saturday, May 16, will bring petrol to 409.78 rupees a liter and high-speed diesel to 409.58 rupees a liter. The move marks the latest weekly adjustment in a volatile fuel market that has whipsawed consumers and the government’s budget since the now-paused US-Israeli war on Iran began Feb. 28.
Petrol, used mainly in private cars, motorcycles, rickshaws and small commercial vehicles, directly affects the household budgets of middle- and lower-middle-class Pakistanis. High-speed diesel powers heavy trucking, buses and industrial generators, feeding into broader transport and electricity costs across the economy.
The government has been resetting pump prices every Friday night since the outbreak of the conflict, which triggered a global fuel crunch after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz — the chokepoint that normally carries one-fifth of the world’s seaborne oil and gas supplies. Only last week, authorities raised petrol by 14.92 rupees a liter and diesel by 15 rupees.
The price trajectory has been erratic. On March 6, days after the war started, the government imposed an initial 55-rupee-a-liter increase on both fuels and announced sweeping austerity measures three days later. Prime Minister Shehbaz later said he had rejected recommendations for further hikes on three separate occasions even as international oil prices climbed.
On April 2, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb unveiled far steeper increases — 43 percent on petrol and 55 percent on diesel — alongside plans for a targeted subsidy program aimed at protecting vulnerable consumers. Within 24 hours, Shehbaz overruled the move, slashing the petroleum levy by 80 rupees a liter and pulling the price of petrol back to 378 rupees.
Further relief followed on April 10, when the prime minister ordered additional cuts of 135 rupees a liter on diesel and 12 rupees on petrol.
Friday’s reduction comes as the government continues to balance the need to shield consumers from imported fuel costs against fiscal pressures from subsidies and levies. No further details on the levy adjustment or subsidy impact were included in the Petroleum Division’s notification.
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