Diesel rises by Rs2.29 to Rs402.96 a litre as petrol stays unchanged at Rs377.91
The government has raised high-speed diesel by Rs2.29 a litre to Rs402.96 for October 31 to November 2 under a fresh OGRA notification, while petrol remains unchanged at Rs377.91 for a second day running.
The federal government has increased the price of high-speed diesel by Rs2.29 a litre, taking it to Rs402.96, while keeping petrol unchanged at Rs377.91, under a new notification issued by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on Friday.
The revised rates came into effect on Saturday, October 31, and will remain in force until Monday, November 2. The notification covers a three-day period, in line with the daily pricing mechanism that replaced the old weekly review system in July.
Under the latest revision, high-speed diesel (HSD) rises from Rs400.67 to Rs402.96 a litre. Petrol, known officially as motor spirit, is held at Rs377.91 a litre, the same rate at which it has now stood for two consecutive revisions.
This is the second diesel increase in as many days. Only a day earlier, diesel had risen by 85 paisas to Rs400.67, crossing the Rs400 mark for the first time. Before that, for October 29, the government had raised petrol by Rs1.85 and diesel by Rs1.75 a litre, so diesel has now climbed on three successive notifications.
The government continues to levy Rs114 a litre in taxes and duties on petrol and Rs100 a litre on diesel, according to Dawn's report on the notification. The petroleum minister has previously disclosed that the diesel price includes a levy of Rs80 a litre, a climate levy of Rs5 and customs duty of Rs20.56.
The daily pricing system was introduced on July 17, with officials saying international oil prices should be passed through to consumers more promptly instead of being held for a full week. Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik has said daily prices are calculated using a seven-day average of international market rates.
Diesel matters disproportionately to household budgets even though most private cars run on petrol. It powers trucks, buses, tractors and much of the country's freight and farm machinery, so a rise in diesel tends to feed through into transport fares and the prices of food and other goods carried to market.
That pass-through is the reason the latest increase will be felt beyond the forecourt. Transporters and farmers face higher operating costs at a time when weekly inflation is already running above 11 percent, driven in part by sharp rises in food prices, and any increase in freight charges can quickly show up in wholesale and retail markets.
The relief scheme announced on September 13 still offers Rs100 a litre off petrol for motorcycles, three-wheeler rickshaws and cars with engines of up to 800cc, aimed at shielding lower-income consumers. Diesel users, including transporters and farmers, have no equivalent cushion under that scheme.
The global backdrop remains tense. Brent crude has traded above $112 a barrel this week, and the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world's oil normally passes, has seen tanker incidents and mine claims in recent days, keeping traders on edge and feeding the volatility that the daily mechanism is designed to reflect.
What comes next depends on the next daily notification and on world oil markets. If crude prices ease as diplomatic efforts around the United States and Iran progress, the mechanism should pass that relief through quickly; if tensions escalate, consumers could see further increases at the pump within days. For now, the rates from October 31 to November 2 stand: petrol Rs377.91, diesel Rs402.96.
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