Pakistan cuts petrol by Rs5.45 and diesel by Rs3.68 a litre as new rates take effect from November 4
Petrol now costs Rs369.06 a litre and high-speed diesel Rs391.52 after OGRA notified the second fuel price cut in two days, alongside a 30-day refinery levy arrangement and LPG market reforms.
Pakistan's motorists are paying less at the pump from Wednesday, after the federal government cut the price of petrol by Rs5.45 a litre and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs3.68 a litre, according to a notification issued by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA). Petrol now costs Rs369.06 a litre, down from Rs374.51, while HSD costs Rs391.52 a litre, down from Rs395.20.
The cut is the second in two days. In the previous revision, petrol had already fallen by Rs3.40 a litre to Rs374.51 and diesel by Rs7.76 a litre to Rs395.20, meaning that over the two rounds petrol has come down by Rs8.85 a litre and diesel by Rs11.44 a litre from their levels at the start of the week.
The revised ex-depot prices were set under the federal government's petroleum pricing mechanism, which tracks international fuel prices and other pricing components. Officials have linked the latest relief to lower international market prices, with the government now fixing fuel prices on a daily basis — a system introduced in July that replaced an earlier weekly mechanism, so that changes in the global market reach consumers more quickly.
Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had directed the government to provide maximum relief to low-income groups. The minister had hinted a day earlier that better news on petroleum prices was on the way after international markets closed lower, and the announcement followed through on that signal.
Alongside the price cut, the government announced a new 30-day arrangement under which oil refineries will contribute to the petroleum levy by bearing a cumulative impact of Rs15 billion. The measure is part of an effort to pass relief on to consumers without entirely giving up the revenue the levy generates for the exchequer.
The fuel announcement came together with sweeping reforms for the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sector, aimed at opening the market to competition, improving supply and curbing profiteering ahead of winter, when demand for LPG typically rises. The cabinet had separately approved a new LPG policy earlier in the day, with subsidised gas promised for low-income families under the Benazir Income Support Programme.
For ordinary households, the cut matters well beyond the petrol tank. Petrol powers the cars and motorcycles used for daily commuting, while diesel runs the trucks, buses and farm machinery that move goods and harvests across the country. When diesel becomes cheaper, transport costs ease, and that can, over time, soften pressure on food and goods prices — although shopkeepers and transporters do not always pass the saving on immediately.
The relief comes against a backdrop of heavy taxation on fuel. Reports put taxes and duties at about Rs114 a litre on petrol and about Rs100 a litre on diesel, which is why even after the cuts, pump prices remain far above the levels seen earlier in the year. Diesel, for context, had peaked at Rs520.35 a litre on April 3, so the current Rs391.52 rate is still a substantial retreat from that high.
The government is meanwhile in talks with Jamaat-e-Islami about the petroleum levy and about fuel relief for farmers and public transport, and those discussions could shape the next rounds of pricing decisions. Consumer groups and transport operators will be watching whether the daily fixation system continues to deliver quick relief when global prices fall — and, just as closely, how fast it raises prices when they rise.
What happens next depends largely on the international market. With hostilities between Iran and the United States still unsettling energy supplies in the region, oil prices remain volatile, and the daily mechanism means Pakistani pump prices could move again within days. For now, though, the November 4 rates give households and businesses a welcome, if modest, breathing space.
More in Pakistan News
Photo: A PSO petrol station in Hyderabad, Pakistan (file image)
Pakistan NewsPakistan cuts petrol by Rs7.06 and diesel by Rs3.71 a litre for November 5
Petrol falls to Rs362 a litre and high-speed diesel to Rs387.81 under the daily pricing mechanism, the second fuel-price cut in two days.
Photo: The Faisal Mosque in Islamabad (file image)
Pakistan NewsGovernment to turn Islamabad’s One Constitution Avenue into a five-star hotel after JIT finds fraud
The federal cabinet has approved a joint investigation team report that found fraud and rigging in Islamabad’s One Constitution Avenue project, and the government says the tower will be converted into a five-star hotel within months.
Photo: A Pakistan International Airlines aircraft (file image)
Pakistan NewsPIA to launch three direct Islamabad-Birmingham flights a week from December 1
Pakistan International Airlines will run three direct flights a week between Islamabad and Birmingham from December 1, restoring a direct link for travellers in the English Midlands, the airline and Birmingham Airport have announced.