Why haven't revised petrol prices in Pakistan been announced yet?

By
Saif ur Rehman
|
A fuel station worker fills petrol in a vehicle at a petrol pump in Karachi on September 01, 2022. — PPI
A fuel station worker fills petrol in a vehicle at a petrol pump in Karachi on September 01, 2022. — PPI

ISLAMABAD: Petrol prices, which are revised fortnightly in Pakistan, have not been changed yet as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has yet to give his directions, sources told Geo News Thursday night.

Sources familiar with the matter said that the prime minister — who is currently in Samarkand, Uzbekistan — has the authority to approve changes to the price of petroleum products.

But PM Shehbaz is attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's (SCO) Council of Heads of State (CHS) summit, where he also held meetings with Russia's Vladimir Putin, Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and others.

"The finance ministry is awaiting the prime minister's directions. Once, the prime minister makes a decision on the summary sent to him, only then will the new prices be issued," the sources said.

The News reported that the price of petrol was likely to drop from Rs235.98 per litre to Rs226.36 after a cut of Rs9.62 per litre for the next fortnight.

However, a slight increase of Rs3.04 per litre is expected in the price of diesel, taking the rate up from Rs247.26 per litre to Rs250.30 for the said duration.