By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The caretaker government decided to keep the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel unchanged for the first half of November, a day after it raised the tariffs on natural gas for most consumers and industries.
The Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Wednesday that the prices of petrol and diesel would remain at Rs283.38 and Rs303.18 per liter, respectively, despite the increase in global oil prices due to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The government also reduced the prices of light diesel oil and kerosene oil by Rs3.40 and Rs3.82 per liter respectively, to provide relief to the low-income segments of society.
The decision came ahead of the first review of a $3 billion bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is expected to arrive this week to assess the country’s fiscal performance and economic reforms.
On Tuesday, Energy Minister Muhammad Ali announced a sharp increase in the fixed tariff for 57 percent of household gas consumers, from Rs10 to Rs400 rupees per month, as part of the measures to reduce the circular debt in the energy sector.
The minister said the new tariffs would also apply to different categories of industrial consumers, with lower rates for low- and middle-income households and higher rates for high-income households.
He said the tariff hike would generate nearly Rs400 billion in revenue and eliminate the losses of the state-run gas companies.
The IMF has been urging Pakistan to address its energy sector debt, which is one of the main challenges to its fiscal stability and economic growth.
Pakistan is being run by a caretaker administration until a general election expected in January.
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