Govt reduces prices of petrol, diesel by up to Rs1.57

LPG rate increased by Rs10 per kilo; kerosene, LDO rates remain unchanged

ISLAMABAD:

The federal government has slashed the prices of petrol and high speed diesel (HSD) by up to Rs1.57 per litre while increased that of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) by Rs10 per kilo effective from November 1, 2020, the finance ministry announced in a statement issued on Saturday.

The government has cut the prices of petrol and diesel by Rs1.57 and Rs0.84 per litre, respectively. The price of petrol has been reduced from Rs103.97 to Rs102.40 per litre while HSD has been reduced to Rs103.22 from Rs104.06 per litre.

The price of LPG has been increased from the existing Rs120 to Rs130 per kilo.

However, there has been no change in the prices of kerosene oil and light diesel oil. Kerosene oil and light diesel oil will be available at Rs65.29 per litre and Rs62.86per litre, respectively.

The HSD is widely used in agriculture and transport sectors. The reduction in its price would have a positive impact on these two sectors.

Reduction in the price of HSD usually impacts the fares of transport but this time around, there is no chance that the transporters will provide some relief to the masses due to monopolistic practices.

The industry had projected a countrywide HSD demand of 714,908 metric tonnes in October. However, its actual sale stood at 597,570 metric tonnes, registering a decline of 16.40 per cent.

Petrol is used in motor vehicles. The industry had projected a demand for petrol at 760,818 million metric tonnes in October. However, its actual sale stood at 609,875 million metric tonnes that witnessed a decline of 19.8 per cent.

The industry officials said that the demand of petrol and diesel was based on the actual sales number of August and September. However, the actual sale was less because of the increase in the availability of smuggled products from Iran.

“Actually in July and August the smuggling of Iranian products had greatly reduced. However, it is now back full time,” industry sources said.

The government recently approved a prime minister’s package for Rabi crops. The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet approved a subsidy of Rs1,000 per 50kg bag of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilizer.

So, the oil industry sees that the package would boost agricultural activities. Therefore, it has set ambitious targets of petrol and diesel consumption in November due to sowing of crops in the Rabi season.

The industry is now projecting demand of petrol at 716,342 metric tonnes and HSD at 704,025 metric tonnes for November.