The government on Saturday announced Rs10 and Rs3 reduction in a litre price of petrol and diesel respectively as crude oil prices have declined by about two-thirds in the international market since striking record peaks above $147 a barrel in July this year.
The fear that a prolonged global recession could slam the brakes on energy demand globally, crude oil prices dropped below $50 a barrel on Saturday despite a decision by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cut output.
OPEC produces around 40 per cent of the world’s crude oil and has started cutting 1.5 million barrels a day from the start of this month.
A notification issued by Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) shows that the government has reduced petrol (premium motor gasoline) price by 13.04 per cent and diesel 4.68.
Now, petrol will be sold at Rs66.66 a litre and diesel (high speed) Rs61.14.
Price of light diesel oil (LDO) has also been cut by Rs7 (11.67 per cent) a litre. LDO will now be sold at Rs53 a litre.
In order to give relief to the people living in remote areas who are heavily depending on kerosene oil for cooking and heating purposes, the price of kerosene has been reduced by Rs5 a litre. After this decline of 8.08 per cent, a litre of kerosene will be sold at Rs56.87.
High octane blending component (HOBC) has witnessed a considerable, Rs15 decline a litre (15.62 per cent). The HOBC will be sold at Rs81.08 a litre at retail as well as directly by oil companies to consumers.
Prices of petroleum products in Pakistan are linked to the international market and are reviewed by OGRA fortnightly.
On November 1, the government had also announced a relief in petroleum prices for domestic consumers following decline in crude oil prices in the international market.
But, despite the latest decrease in prices of petroleum products, the government is still earning Rs28 per litre on petrol and Rs9 a litre on LDO by levying a tax called Petroleum Development Levy (PDL).
2 comments:
I don' about Pakistan Usman, but in India they keep the taxes that high cuz it's a highly subsidized commodity. During high oil prices, the government keeps the prices relatively stable by racking up huge oil deficits, and then keep the taxes high even if prices go down, cuz they need the money to pay back the subsidies..
Prices are higher in general, but the answer is better cars not llower prices...
During the summer oil skyrocketed and today the price of a barrel of oil has dropped below 60 dollars a barrel. It seems as though this cannot last for much longer. I agree that we need more fuel efficient transportation, not lower oil prices. The supply is limited and we need to focus on new energy technology.
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