Business

Petrol price may reduce by Rs10-15 per litre on rupee strength

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

The price of diesel may be slashed by Rs2 per litre.
OGRA to meet for price revision for next fortnight.
IMF reservations could cause hurdles in price cut.

KARACHI: The improvement in the exchange rate, mostly in the favour of local currency, is likely to bring the prices of petroleum products down in the next fortnightly review by the oil sector regulator.

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) will meet soon to revise the petroleum prices for the next fortnight starting October 16, 2022.

If the government decides to pass on this rupee-dollar parity impact to the end consumers, the price of petrol may be slashed by an estimated Rs10-15 per litre and that of diesel by Rs2 per litre, according to industry sources.

The rupee fell for the second straight session on Thursday as dollar demand from importers outpaced greenback sales by exporters, who chose to sit on the sidelines in anticipation of range-bound trading in the local currency going forward, dealers said.

However, the sources added that this facilitation could be delayed owing to International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) reservations over the petroleum subsidy as Pakistan had agreed with the lender of the last resort to gradually add Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) to the prices of fuels.

The addition of PDL will offset the exchange rate impact.

According to the working of the oil industry, all petroleum prices are showing a declining trend worldwide; however, it is not clear if the government would pass on the impact or offset it by raising taxation.

Oil prices traded about 2% higher on Thursday, reversing course, as low levels of diesel inventory ahead of winter helped investors shrug off higher-than-expected stocks of crude and gasoline.

Analysts say Finance Minister Ishaq Dar seems to be following a populist policy and may avoid burdening the masses further at least for now, doing good on the word that he gave before assuming the office of finance minister.

There’s a chance that the finance minister might pass the impact of a global downtrend and a stronger rupee if world markets continued to retreat.

Business

Trade ties between Pak-Oman: Both nations decide to activate “Joint Business Council”.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Jam Kamal Khan, federal minister for commerce, visited Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Muscat alongside chairman Faisal Abdullah Al Rawas.

To enable closer economic collaboration, both sides decided during the meeting to activate joint Business Council between OCCI and the federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and industry.

Concurrent with the conference, the Embassy of Pakistan arranged a b2b networking event in association with OCCI to gather Omani Businessmen and Pakistani Business Delegates investigating trade prospects.

Speaking on the occasion, Jam Kamal Khan said, “Our present trade figures do not fairly represent the depth of our connection. We can quickly raise the current Trade volume to two or three times its present level by just eliminating logistical and communication barriers.

Business

Despite economic gains, PSX remains strong.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Amidst the ongoing negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) regarding a loan tranche, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) has resumed its upward trajectory in recent days.

The KSE-100 Index gained 600 points on Friday, the penultimate working day of the business week, and then increased to 115,730 points as traders showed confidence and engaged in trading.

After experiencing fluctuations, the PSX gained strength on Thursday, as the major index surpassed 115,000 points.

The KSE 100-Index closed at 115,094.23 points after gaining 1,009.70 points, or 0.89 percent. 115,247.39 was the intraday high, and 14,429.93 was the lowest.

According to experts, one important factor is Moody’s Ratings’ upgrade of Pakistani banks. Investor confidence has also increased due to the expectation of a positive conclusion from the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

In its assessment, Moody’s stated, “We have shifted our outlook on Pakistan’s banking system from stable to positive to reflect the banks’ resilient financial performance as well as improving macroeconomic conditions from very weak levels a year ago.”

The major index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) surpassed 115,000 on Thursday, indicating a surge in the market.

Business

Pakistan resolves to meet benchmarks, and the IMF promises economic help.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

In the midst of an ongoing economic review, the delegation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has promised Pakistan economic cooperation.

In order to assess the delivery of a $1 billion tranche under the $7 billion rescue deal, IMF officials are now in Pakistan.

Today, March 14, marks the completion of the two-week-long economic review and negotiations between the global lender’s representatives and Pakistani authorities.

The team met with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb at the Ministry of Finance for the last round of negotiations.

The nation’s economic team’s actions and performance were praised by the visiting officials.

Aurangzeb promised the IMF during the conference that all economic goals would be met. He said that as long as the loan program is in place, no goals would be broken.