The federal government on Saturday increased the price of petrol by Rs3.72 per litre in line with fluctuation in global oil prices effective Dec 1 (today).
It also hiked the price of high speed diesel (HSD) by R3.29 per litre. However, the price of kerosene oil has been slashed by Rs0.62 per litre and light diesel oil (LDO) by Rs0.48 per litre.
The finance ministry in a statement said that the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) had worked out the consumer prices of petroleum products as per variation in the oil price in the international market.
The price of petrol has witnessed an increase of Rs3.72 per litre, going up from Rs248.38 to Rs252.10 per litre.
The price of HSD has also been raised by Rs3.29 per litre, from Rs255.14 to Rs258.43 per litre, due to fluctuation in global oil prices.
Petrol is used in motorbike and cars and its demand has increased since the government cut indigenous gas supplies to CNG retail outlets in Punjab several years ago.
CNG stations in Punjab now use imported gas, the price of which is double that of indigenous gas. As a result, CNG has become uncompetitive in the province.
HSD is primarily used in the transport and agriculture sectors. Therefore, fluctuations in its price will have a direct inflationary impact on consumers.
Likewise, the price of kerosene oil has come down by Rs0.62 per litre from Rs165.60 to Rs164.98 per litre and LDO by Rs0.48 from Rs152.21 to Rs151.73 per litre.
Kerosene oil is used in remote areas, especially in the northern parts of the country, where LPG is not available for cooking purposes. The Pakistan Army is its key user in the northern region due to the cold weather. LDO is used in the industrial sector.
The oil prices also include the Inland Freight Equalization Margin (IFEM), set at Rs7.50 per litre for petrol and Rs4.15 per litre for HSD.
The premium on petrol is $9.80 per barrel. This premium rate applies to the import of petrol and is higher than usual, contributing to the proposed increase in the price of petrol.
In the last review, the government adjusted the increase in oil prices within the IFEM, rather than passing it on to the general public, to mitigate the inflationary impact.
The government is currently imposing a petroleum levy of Rs60 per litre on both petrol and HSD, a high rate that consumers are paying to help cover the country's current expenditures.
Meanwhile, Ogra has announced a marginal increase in Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) prices for Dec, citing fluctuations in the exchange rate as a contributing factor. According to a statement issued by Ogra, the LPG producer price remains directly linked to the Saudi Aramco Contract Price (CP) and the prevailing US dollar exchange rate.
While the Saudi Aramco CP remained unchanged compared to the previous month, a slight uptick of 0.05% in the average dollar exchange rate resulted in a marginal increase in LPG consumer prices. The price hike translates to an additional Rs1.32 for an 11.8 kg domestic cylinder, marking a 0.04% rise. On a per-kilogram basis, the increase is Rs0.11.
With this adjustment, the producer price of an 11.8kg LPG cylinder for Dec 2024 has been set at Rs2,513.45, up from Rs2,512.13 in November. Similarly, the consumer price for the same cylinder now stands at Rs3,000.79, compared to Rs2,999.47 last month.
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