Islamabad: The federal government on Wednesday increased the price of petrol by Rs5 per tola, giving another shock to the already inflation-hit who are finding it hard to meet ends.
In a notification released on Wednesday, the Finance Division, however, attributed the price hike to the depreciation of the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar and an increase in the prices registered by Platts Singapore.
— Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan (@Financegovpk) March 15, 2023
With the latest review, the most inflationary high-speed diesel (HSD) prices made a new record, reaching Rs293 per litre. The HSD price adjustment directly impacts consumer prices because of an increase in transport costs.
While keeping the LDO rate unchanged at Rs184.84 per litre, the finance ministry said the per-litre price of petrol had been increased by Rs5 to reach Rs272.
Since January 15, the government has increased the prices of HSD and petrol by Rs65 and Rs62 per litre, respectively.
At present, the GST is zero on all the key products, including petrol, HSD, kerosene and LDO, against the normal GST rate of 17%.
The government, however, is charging about Rs50 per litre petroleum development levy on petrol and high-octane blending component (HOBC) and Rs45 per litre on HSD. It is also charging about Rs25-27 customs duty on a litre of petrol and HSD.
