As the caretaker government announced the prices of petroleum products for the next fortnight, Business Recorder takes a look at the component-wise breakdown.

The authorities increased petrol price by Rs14.91 per litre, and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs18.44 per litre, taking them to historic highs of Rs305.36 and Rs311.84 per litre, respectively.

The component-wise breakdown saw a massive difference. On a cumulative basis, the governments (coalition and caretaker) have increased prices of petrol by 21% since August 1.

“Owing to the increasing trend of petroleum prices in the international market and exchange rate variations, the government has decided to revise the consumer prices of petroleum products,” the Finance Division said in a press release at the time.

The new prices took effect from September 1, 2023.

Petrol

The ex-refinery price saw a major increase of Rs10.27 per litre.

Authorities also decided to increase the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) by Rs5, taking it to Rs60. This is the highest PDL allowed at the moment.

The uptick in PDL comes on the back of the $3-billion stand-by arrangement (SBA) reached with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for next 9 months by the government of Pakistan. One of the conditions agreed under the programme was to increase the ceiling of PDL from previous Rs55 per litre to Rs60.

However, the Inland Freight Equalization Margin (IFEM) reduced marginally by Re0.36 to Rs3.77.

Distribution and dealer margins remained unchanged at Rs6 and Rs7, respectively.

High-Speed Diesel (HSD)

On the other hand, HSD’s ex-refinery price also saw a significant increase of Rs16.38 per litre. The authorities decided to keep the PDL unchanged at Rs50.

Meanwhile, the IFEM increased by Rs2.07 to negative Re0.96.

The distribution and dealer margin remained unchanged at Rs6.24 and Rs7, respectively.