ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday increased the price of petrol by Rs3.40 per litre and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs6.72 per litre, with the new rates taking effect from Thursday.
Under the revised rates, petrol will now be sold at Rs367.75 per litre, while diesel will cost Rs393.67 per litre.
According to the Petroleum Division’s notification, the new prices will be applicable on September 10 (Thursday).
In the previous review on Tuesday, the government had increased the petrol price by Rs5.58 per litre and the diesel price by Rs4.18per litre.
The price of high-speed diesel has come down from a peak of Rs520.35 recorded on April 3. Its price had started rising from Rs281 per litre after the US-Iran war broke out on February 28.
The petrol price had peaked at Rs458.41 on April 3 after beginning its upward trajectory from Rs266 in the first week of March.
Pakistan’s daily fuel price mechanism
On July 17, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik announced that fuel prices would now be fixed on a daily basis due to fluctuations in international market prices following renewed hostilities between Iran and the US.
The government had earlier replaced the fortnightly pricing system with weekly reviews following the outbreak of the Middle East conflict.
Petrol is mainly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers, and changes in its price affect the middle and lower-middle classes.
Similarly, changes in diesel prices also impact the public at large, as it is mainly used in the heavy transport sector, power plants, and large generators.
Brent crude rises above $100 a barrel
Benchmark Brent crude oil futures rose past $100 a barrel on Wednesday, hitting a more than six-week high and breaching the symbolic threshold for the first time since July 24 as intensifying conflict in the Middle East heightened concerns about oil flows from the region.
ALSO READ: Brent Crude Rises Above $100 a Barrel as Middle East Conflict Intensifies
Brent crude futures were up $2.01, or 2.05 percent, at $99.93 a barrel by 01:02pm PKT, after earlier touching $100.19, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was up $1.49, or 1.60 percent, at $94.52 a barrel.
Brent crude prices have risen by a quarter since early last month as hopes fade for a permanent resolution to the six-month-old US-Iran conflict.
Since the Iran war began on February 28, Brent has surged as high as $126.41 a barrel, a peak reached on April 30.
