The federal government on Thursday dramatically raised the petroleum levy on petrol from Rs. 106 to Rs. 161 per litre, up by Rs. 55.
This pushed petrol prices to Rs. 458.40 per litre. The levy on High-speed diesel (HSD) has been abolished except for a Rs. 2.5 carbon charge.
Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said the rate hike was necessary after Pakistan failed to convince the International Monetary Fund to allow higher fuel subsidies, which it had capped at Rs. 152 billion.
This is the second major fuel price surge in less than a month, bringing cumulative increases to 63 percent for petrol and 75 percent for diesel.
Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb announced the new rates in a pre-recorded video and blamed the rate hike on Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Kerosene oil jumped to Rs. 468 per litre, and light diesel oil to Rs. 395 per litre.