Rs5.32/litre cut in petrol price likely from 16th

ISLAMABAD: The government may decrease the petrol price by Rs5.32 per litre from January 16, according to official sources.

However, no change in high speed diesel (HSD) price was expected in the wake of decrease in the prices of POL [petrol, oil and lubricants] in the international market registered in the ongoing fortnight, and the increase of Pak Rupee value against the US dollar, a senior government official told The News.

“Working on new POL prices to be implemented from January 16, 2024, will be finalised on January 15.

“Data collected so far suggest a decrease in MS (motor spirit) price by Rs5.32 per unit, and HSD Re0.26 per litre. The data of 13 days also suggests a decrease in the price of kerosene oil by Rs3.29 per litre and light diesel oil (LDO) by Rs1.75 per litre.”

The government may not decrease the diesel price and keep its price unchanged, as the decrease of 26 paisas was worked out in the initial working. The price of local jet pilot fuel (JP-1) may plunge by Rs3.29 per litre.

The government official said that petrol prices are likely to decrease from current Rs267.34 to Rs262.02 per litre, while the HSD price would remain unchanged at Rs276.21 per litre. Likewise, the kerosene price is also likely to tumble by Rs3.20 per litre to Rs185.54 from Rs188.83 per litre and the LDO price to reduce by Rs1.75 per litre to Rs164 per litre from the existing Rs165.75 per litre.

The data also shows that the new ex-refinery price of petrol from January 16, 2024, is likely to be at Rs180.29 per litre whereas the existing MS refinery price stands at Rs185.61 per litre. Likewise, the new ex-refinery price of HSD has been projected to go down to Rs195.80 from Rs196.06 per litre. The ex-refinery price of kerosene and LDO has also been projected to decrease to Rs176.88 per litre and Rs157.41 per litre, respectively. The existing ex-refinery prices of kerosene and LDO stand at Rs180.17 and Rs159.16 per litre, respectively.