On Thursday the government declared a reduction of Rs15 per liter in the price of gasoline, of Rs27.15 per liter in the price of high-speed diesel (HSD), of Rs30.01 per liter in the price of kerosene and of Rs15 per liter in the price of light diesel oil (LDO).
The petrol price has been reduced from Rs. 96.58 to Rs. 81.58, while HSD will be available at Rs. 80.10 following a reduction of Rs. 27.15 from Rs. 107.25 per liter. The price of kerosene from Rs. 77.45 has been reduced to Rs. 47.44 and LDO, which had previously been priced at Rs. 62.51 will now be priced at Rs. 47.51.
The government made the decision, according to a notification released by the Ministry of Finance, to cut the prices of petroleum products in order to “provide consumer relief.”
“The government provides maximum relief to the people. Relief packages include an economic stimulus plan, Ehsaas emergency relief program, SME incentive plan, and several other relief initiatives. The latest one is [a] significant drop in petroleum product prices,” read the notification.
The new rates will take effect as from May 1st.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) had proposed a reduction in the price of major petroleum products by up to Rs. 44.07 per liter for the month of May to share with customers the value of lower international prices.
The regulatory authority had proposed a drop from Rs. 107.25 of Rs. 33.94 to Rs. 73.31 for the HSD price, a drop of 31.6 percent.
It also worked out a reduction of Rs. 20.68 per liter (down 21.4pc) to Rs. 75.9 for petrol, which was previously on Rs96.58.
Ogra had also proposed that the price of kerosene oil by Rs. 44.07 to Rs. 33.38 per liter, a decline of 56.9pc from the Rs. 77.45 per liter, which came into effect late March.
For LDO it was suggested that the price be cut to Rs. 37.94 per liter by Rs. 24.57 (-39.3pc).
The decline in fuel prices comes as oil prices slumped in the face of worldwide declining crude storage capacity and concerns that demand for fuel will only gradually recover until countries ease the curbs put on economic and social activity to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Oil prices fell to record lows this month, with the US benchmark West Texas Intermediate dropping well under zero for the first time as governments around the world shut down industries and air travel grinds to a halt due to the virus.
An agreement between top crude-producing nations to curb production from May 1 by 10 million barrels a day has done little to cool the market.
