Petrol price in Pakistan may get cheaper by Rs10-15 per litre from October 16

KARACHI: A decrease is expected in the prices of petroleum products from October 16, after the upcoming fortnightly review  by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA), due to the recent improvement in the value of the Pakistani rupee. 

OGRA will meet soon to revise the petroleum prices for the next fortnight starting October 16, 2022.

 According to sources in the industry, the price of petrol may  go down by Rs10-15 per litre. The price of diesel, meanwhile, may be slashed by Rs2 per litre.

The rupee fell for the second straight session on Thursday as dollar demand from importers outpaced greenback sales by exporters, who chose to sit on the sidelines in anticipation of range-bound trading in the local currency going forward, dealers said.

However, the sources added that this facilitation could be delayed owing to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) reservations over the petroleum subsidy as Pakistan had agreed with the lender of the last resort to gradually add Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) to the prices of fuel, Geo News reported.

The addition of PDL will offset the exchange rate impact.

All petroleum prices are showing a declining trend worldwide; however, it is unclear if the government will pass on the impact or offset it by raising taxation.

Oil prices traded about 2% higher on Thursday, reversing course, as low levels of diesel inventory ahead of winter helped investors shrug off higher-than-expected stocks of crude and gasoline.

Analysts say Finance Minister Ishaq Dar seems to be following a populist policy and may avoid burdening the masses further at least for now, doing good on the word that he gave before assuming the office of finance minister.

There’s a chance that the finance minister might pass the impact of a global downtrend and a stronger rupee if world markets continue to retreat.