By Our Correspondent
ISLAMABAD: The federal government has increased the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) for a three-day period, citing the latest changes in the international oil market.
Petrol has been increased by Rs2.10 per litre, taking its price to Rs392.76 per litre, while the price of HSD has gone up by 30 paisa, reaching Rs399.64 per litre.
The revised rates will remain effective from October 3 to October 5, according to a notification issued by the Petroleum Division.
The government is currently charging Rs114 per litre in taxes and duties on petrol and Rs100 per litre on diesel, adding significantly to the final retail prices paid by consumers.
The latest increase comes after a period of considerable volatility in domestic fuel prices linked to movements in global crude markets and tensions in the Middle East.
HSD, which is widely used by the transport and industrial sectors, remains substantially below its record level of Rs520.35 per litre recorded on April 3. Its price had risen from around Rs281 per litre after the escalation of hostilities involving Iran and the United States.
Petrol had also reached a record Rs458.41 per litre on April 3, after beginning a sharp upward movement from approximately Rs266 per litre in early March.
The government has meanwhile continued implementing fuel-conservation measures amid uncertainty in international energy markets. Markets have been directed to close by 9pm, while fuel allocations for official vehicles have been reduced by 50 per cent for three months.
In another measure aimed at easing the impact of higher international oil prices, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced a relief scheme on September 13 for motorcycle users, auto-rickshaw operators and owners of vehicles with engines up to 800cc.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar reviewed the implementation of the fuel subsidy programme on September 29 and said several federal institutions and provincial governments had worked together to implement the initiative.
Officials told the meeting that approximately 7.60 million registrations had been completed, while the token redemption process had entered its second week. Around 7.71 million tokens had reportedly been redeemed.
The government has also changed the mechanism for determining fuel prices. In July, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik announced that fuel prices would be reviewed on a daily basis in response to fluctuations in international oil prices.
Under the revised mechanism, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) was assigned responsibility for determining fuel prices according to international market trends.
Previously, the government had been revising fuel prices on a weekly basis, while also introducing conservation measures to prepare for possible disruptions to oil supplies caused by regional tensions.
The latest petrol increase is likely to have a direct effect on private motorists, motorcycles, rickshaws and other small vehicles. Diesel prices, meanwhile, have broader implications for freight transport, generators, power-related operations and other commercial activities.
Petrol and HSD are also the country’s major petroleum revenue-generating products, with combined monthly sales running into hundreds of thousands of tonnes, while demand for kerosene remains comparatively small.