Ukraine crisis: Petroleum prices may rise by up to Rs7 per litre in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: In view of the soaring prices of Brent crude in the international market amid the Ukraine crisis, the rates of petroleum products in Pakistan are expected to increase by up to Rs7 a litre, say sources.

It is pertinent to mention here that the global oil prices broke past $100 and safe havens surged while equities tumbled after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "military operation" in Ukraine today. Oil prices increased more than 5% with Brent moving within spitting distance of the $100 not seen since September 2014.

The sources privy to the matter said that  Russia’s military operation in Ukraine may impact the petrol prices in Pakistan.

If the oil prices remain at $100 per barrel till March 1 in the global market, then the price of petroleum products in Pakistan may increase up to Rs 7 per litre, said the sources within the oil industry.

Earlier, the OGRA chief had hinted at a further hike in petroleum prices.

Petrol price increases in Pakistan by Rs12.03

On February 15, the government had dropped a major bombshell on the people by increasing the price of petrol by Rs12.03 per litre due to an increase in the prices of crude oil in the international market.

“The prices of petroleum products are showing a drastic increase in the international market and presently are at the highest level since 2014. Despite the unabated increase since the beginning of the year, Prime Minister Imran Khan deferred the last review of petroleum products' prices on January 31, 2022, and advised against the summary of OGRA,” the finance division had said in the statement.

The finance division had stated that the government had also levied 0% sales tax and reduced the levy to provide “relief” to the consumers against budgeted.

The finance division had said that the “relief” had led the government to bear a revenue loss of around Rs 35 billion fortnightly.