By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: The government is preparing to lift prices of all petroleum products by Rs4.50 to Rs7 a liter starting Saturday for the fortnight through March 15, the first broad increase in weeks, after benchmark crude posted modest gains amid regional tensions.
Official sources said the upward movement in international crude this week has pushed ex-depot rates for petrol, high-speed diesel, kerosene and light diesel oil higher, with final numbers to be locked in on Feb. 28. The sources estimated the increases at about Rs4.50 a liter for petrol, Rs4.70 for high-speed diesel, Rs5 for kerosene and Rs7 for light diesel oil, subject to last-minute calculations.
The government’s current ex-depot price for petrol stands at Rs258.17 a liter, though pumps charge more than Rs259.30. High-speed diesel is fixed at Rs275.70 ex-depot and sells near Rs277 at retail. Kerosene sits at Rs180.53 and light diesel oil at Rs161.72. In the open market, however, kerosene trades nowhere below Rs300 a liter.
Together with customs duty, the petroleum levy and the climate support levy, the government is currently taking about Rs105 a liter in taxes on petrol and Rs98 on high-speed diesel. Customs duty alone adds Rs17-18 a liter on both fuels, whether locally refined or imported, while distributors and dealers collect another Rs17 a liter in margins.
Petrol, used mainly for private cars, two-wheelers, rickshaws and small vehicles, directly hits household budgets of middle- and lower-middle-class families. High-speed diesel powers trucks, buses, tractors, trains, tube-wells and threshers and is widely viewed as inflationary because any rise quickly flows through to vegetable prices and other staples. Sales volumes underscore the revenue stakes. Petrol and high-speed diesel together average 700,000-800,000 tons a month, dwarfing kerosene’s 10,000 tons. The petroleum levy alone brought in Rs1.161 trillion in fiscal 2025 and is budgeted to climb 27% to Rs1.470 trillion this year.
The sources said the fortnightly pricing formula, which tracks international product prices with a lag, left little room to avoid the adjustment after this week’s crude move. Final ex-depot rates will be notified Saturday afternoon and take effect immediately for the period ending March 15.
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