Caretaker Government Keeps Petrol and High-Speed Diesel Prices Unchanged for the Next Fortnight

Islamabad: On Tuesday, the interim administration kept the current gasoline and high-speed diesel (HSD) rates in place for the ensuing two weeks.

As per the Ministry of Finance’s notice, the rates of gasoline and HSD would continue to be Rs283.38 and Rs303.18 per liter, respectively.

Meanwhile, the cost of a liter of light-diesel and kerosene oil was lowered to Rs189.46 and Rs3.82, respectively.

The action defies predictions that the price of gasoline and diesel will drop by Rs. 5 to 18 per liter. According to official sources, unless the caretaker government raises the petroleum duty anymore, the price of HSD is expected to drop by around Rs5–6 per liter to less than Rs300. However, gas was anticipated to cost around Rs. 18 less per liter.

The rupee’s around Rs3 gain against the dollar over the past two weeks was the primary cause of this, as the average price of gasoline jumped by approximately $3.5 per barrel while the average price of diesel declined by about $1.3 per barrel.

The caretaker administration reduced the price of high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs15 per liter and gasoline by Rs 40 per liter on October 16.

HSD is used by most of the transportation industry. Its price is considered very inflationary because it is primarily utilized in heavy-duty vehicles, railroads, and agricultural engines such as trucks, buses, tractors, tube wells, and threshers. In particular, it drives up the cost of produce and other food items.