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Petrol price in Pakistan expected to decrease by over Rs7/litre

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  • Latest news about petrol price in Pakistan suggests rates to drop.
  • Diesel price expected to drop by Rs16.61 per litre, light diesel Rs10.87.
  • Govt apparently not in mood to raise petrol price, say oil industry officials.

KARACHI: The price of petrol in Pakistan may decrease by Rs7.24 per litre and diesel by Rs16.61 per litre in the next fortnightly review if the government passes on the impact of the retreating global market by not raising taxation, latest news about the rates suggest.

Oil industry data shows that all petroleum prices are showing a declining trend; however, it is not clear if the government will pass on the impact or offset it by raising taxation.

Industry calculations show that the ex-depot price of petrol has registered a Rs7.24 per litre decrease to Rs230.19 per litre for the next fortnight compared to the existing price of Rs237.43 per litre, The News reported.

The ex-depot price of diesel has decreased by Rs16.61 to Rs230.82 per litre for the next fortnight compared to the current price of Rs247.43 per litre.

The ex-depot price of light diesel reduced by Rs10.87 to Rs186.41 per litre for the upcoming fortnight compared to Rs197.28 per litre now.

The ex-depot price of kerosene declined by Rs14.20 to Rs187.82 per litre against Rs197.28 per litre currently.

The prices calculated by the oil industry are based on the existing taxation by the government.

The government is charging zero general sales tax (GST) on petroleum products where the rate of petroleum levy (PL) on petrol is Rs37.42 and on diesel Rs7.58 per litre.

Under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) conditions, the government has to raise the levy to Rs50 per litre on diesel and petrol to generate additional revenue to achieve the tax collection target for this fiscal.

According to the oil sector officials, the government apparently is not in a mood to increase the petroleum prices by raising the rate of levy or re-imposing GST after Ishaq Dar takes the help of the Finance Ministry.

“It seems that Dar would not be raising the price of petroleum products, at least for this fortnight to send out a message about his plan to provide relief to the masses as he had pledged to do so before taking the charge of the finance ministry,” a top oil firm official believed.

He said that Dar might pass the impact of the global downtrend or he could also decide to stick with the same if global markets further eased in the coming review of prices.

According to him, the average price of crude oil was around 91 dollars per barrel from September 16 to 28, whereas average prices of diesel and petrol were $115 and $81 per barrel respectively in the global market.

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Petrol, diesel prices likely to go down from April 1

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  • Petrol rate likely to reduce by Rs4-5 per litre.
  • Rs15-20 per litre reduction expected in diesel price.
  • Sources hint at possibility of prices remaining unchanged.

Following a reduction in international crude oil prices, the rates of petroleum products in Pakistan are expected to decline from April 1, Geo News reported Wednesday.

According to estimates of oil marketing companies (OMCs), the price of diesel is likely to decline by Rs15-20 per litre while the price of petrol is expected to go down by Rs4-5 per litre.

However, well-placed sources in the industry said that there is a possibility that the Finance Division keeps the price unchanged.

In its last fortnight bulletin, the federal government raised the price of petrol to Rs272 per litre.

The Finance Division attributed the price hike to the depreciation of the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar and an increase in the prices registered by Platts Singapore.

The price of MS (petrol) was increased by Rs5 per litre and the price of hi-speed diesel was increased by Rs13 per litre.

The increase in the price of kerosene oil was kept at Rs2.56 by reducing the government’s dues on it. Similarly, the price of light diesel oil was kept constant by adjusting the government dues as well.

The new prices came into effect on March 16 and will remain in place till March 31.

The Finance Division will announce the news rates on March 31 which will remain in place for the next 15 days. 

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Banks to observe extended working hours

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At the request of the Federal Board of Revenue, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday directed all branches of banks to observe extended banking hours in order to facilitate the taxpayers in payment of government duties/taxes.

The central bank, in a statement issued in this regard, said that the direction is for all branches of banks including the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and field offices of SBP Banking Services Corporation (SBP-BSC).

“[…] all branches of banks including National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and field offices of SBP Banking Services Corporation (SBP-BSC) shall observe extended banking hours until 04:00 P.M. and 06:00 P.M. on 30th and 31st March 2023 respectively for collection of government taxes through ADC’s Over-the-Counter (OTC) facility,” the statement read.

It mentioned that National Institutional Facilitation Technologies (NIFT) shall arrange a special clearing at 6pm on March 31 (Friday) for the same-day clearing of payment instruments deposited at NBP’s authorised branches for customs collections.

“For this purpose, all banks shall arrange to keep their clearing-related branches open till such time that is necessary to facilitate the special clearing by NIFT on March 31, 2023 (Friday),” it read.

It should be noted that during Ramadan, banks observe reduced hours. Currently, the timings are:

Public dealing timings:

  • Monday to Thursday — 9am to 2pm (without break)
  • Friday — 8:30am to 1pm (without break)

Office timings:

  • Monday to Thursday — 9am to 3:30pm (with prayer break from 2pm to 2:30pm)
  • Friday — 8:30am to 1pm (without break)

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PM Shehbaz takes notice of gas loadshedding during sehr, iftar

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  • PM Shehbaz says he has already taken notice of the matter.
  • Premier summons a meeting to discuss issue of gas loadshedding.
  • “We will leave no stone unturned to address this issue,” PM says.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday assured the members of the National Assembly that his government would address the issue of gas loadshedding during sehr and iftar as inflation-weary people have been registering complaints.

The prime minister, responding to a point of order raised by MNA Syed Agha Rafiullah, told the house that he had already taken notice of the matter.

PM Shehbaz shared that he had already summoned a meeting to be held later in the day, to discuss the issue of gas loadshedding.

“We will leave no stone unturned to address this issue,” the prime minister assured the house.

Earlier, a parliamentarian from Karachi’s Malir area drew the house’s attention to the problem of gas loadshedding being faced by the people, particularly those of Karachi, during sehr and iftar.

He said though the prime minister had already taken notice of the situation, the Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) needed to be directed to resolve the issue and provide uninterrupted supply during sehr and iftar.

Last week, the SSGC said gas would be supplied to domestic consumers during the holy month of Ramadan, but for limited hours — a move that irked consumers who complained of not getting enough of this essential fuel during mealtimes.

The utility had said that the gas pressure would be low from 8am to 2:30pm as it was facing a shortfall of 250 million mmbtu.

According to the SSGC helpline, for iftar, gas will be supplied to consumers in Karachi from 2:30pm to 7pm, while for sehr it will be available from 2:30am to 5am.

The gas utility added that consumers would face complete suspension or low pressure during the rest of the hours. 

However, the people have been complaining that gas remained suspended during sehr and iftar which forced them to purchase meals from hotels and restaurants which burdened their pockets.

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