Business community has disapproved massive increase in petroleum products and urged the government to lower petroleum products (POL) prices in view of reduced oil prices at the international market. They said that as per government's own price mechanism of POL, there should be immediate reduction in prices of not only POL but electricity, transport fares, including train and airlines but the high ups are reluctant to bring them down.
The noted that world oil prices were constantly falling and now the price of POL per barrel has gone down below $66.67 but the PTI-led government has continue to deny price cushion to the consumers with the same ratio adamantly. The masses in general and trade and industry in particular need to heave sigh of relief at this juncture when everyone remain under the heavy burden of unaffordable prices of utilities, essential goods and food items, they said.
Engr Daroo Khan Achakzai, president of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has expressed serious concern on exorbitant Rs 6 per litre hike in the prices of petrol and diesel from April 1 and alerted that it would have multiplying effects on almost all the business activities, including the cost of intra/inter-city transportation of raw materials and consumer goods thus further escalating the cost of production of industrial goods and spurring inflationary trend which at present is already 8.2 percent
"The price of all the food, fruits and vegetables) and kitchen items, construction material, fertilisers, imported goods, et cetera et cetera, will be dearer as these goods are supplied to different cities of the country through diesel-based vehicles," he said.
The FPCCI president recalled that the price of crude oil in international market in August 2018, when the PTI government assumed the charge, was US$ 75 per barrel which up to March 28, 2019 was further declined to US$ 66.67/barrel. "Instead of passing benefits to the masses, government has soared petroleum products prices," he lamented, asking the government to provide relief to the consumers proportionately."
Daroo Khan argued that the actual price of petrol is Rs 58.94 per litre whereas it is supplied to the consumers at the rate of Rs 98.89 per litre out of which about Rs 40/litre is earned by the government, dealers and distributors.
Citing facts and figures, he further argued that around 90 percent of total consumption of POL products are jointly consumed by the transport sector and power sector wherein almost 65pc electricity is generated by the thermal while fuel (furnace oil and diesel) consumption for thermal power generation is 52 percent. Hence, he underscored the need to translate these cheaper prices in electricity tariff which will have a positive multiplying effect on cost of operation and on overall industrial activities such as production of cement, textile, paint chemical sectors, etc, and ultimately contribute in promotion of exports and reduction in inflation.
"This will also help in shifting the burden from CNG consumption in transport to petrol and making it available to the industrial sector particularly in Punjab which is suffering from acute shortage of gas in winter season," he said.
A trader Athar Ahmed said that unfortunately, government was following its predecessors by not implementing the fair price mechanism. Yakoob Ahmed reminded the government of its claim of being the business and investment-friendly, suggested it should reduce POL prices honestly as the people of Pakistan deserve it. He noted that government had done nothing to overcome energy crisis and rather increased prices of electricity, gas and other utilities, frequently.
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