Petrol price reduced by Rs1.65 per litre, diesel’s by 88 paise

ISLAMABAD: The Petroleum Division has announced a slight reduction in petrol and High Speed Diesel (HSD) prices for September 19–21, driven by falling global refined product costs. A primary contributor to the lower petrol price is the drop in premium and freight charges, which fell from USD 17. 70 to USD 15. 46 per barrel for September 19. According to the official notification, the ex-depot price of petrol has decreased by Rs 1. 65 per litre—from Rs 390. 79 to Rs 389. 14 per litre—while HSD dropped by Rs 0. 88 per litre to settle at Rs 424. 04 per litre. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) calculated these adjusted rates using a seven-working-day rolling average of the daily Platts Arab Gulf Means Price. During this period, the average petrol price shifted to USD 132. 57 per barrel (compared to USD 131. 33 on September 18), while HSD decreased to USD 124. 24 per barrel from USD 124. 75. Pakistan imported more than 80 percent of its total consumption through import of refined petroleum products. A Petroleum Division notification states that levies and profit margins remain largely steady across both products. The change is recorded in import cost of both petroleum products. The import cost of petrol has been decreased to Rs 278. 58 per litre from Rs 280. 33 per litre, whereas, cost of HSD price has gone down to Rs 317. 13 per litre from Rs 318. 05 per litre. According to a Petroleum Division notification, government levies and fixed profit margins for petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) remain unchanged. Both fuels carry a Petroleum Levy of Rs 80 per litre, a Climate Support Levy of Rs 5 per litre, and profit margins of Rs 9. 98 per litre for dealers and Rs 7. 87 per litre for oil marketing companies. Meanwhile, customs duties stay fixed at Rs 19. 59 per litre for petrol and Rs 15. 68 per litre for HSD, while the Inland Freight Equalization Margin (IFEM) has been adjusted at Rs 7. 71 on petrol and Rs 4. 06 per litre on HSD. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed authorities to further expand the Prime Minister’s Fuel Relief Scheme, allowing older motorcycles, rickshaws and Chingchi rickshaws to benefit from the subsidised petrol programme. Under the latest direction, motorcycles, rickshaws and Chingchi vehicles registered on or after January 1, 2006 will be eligible for registration, effectively bringing vehicles up to 20 years old into the relief scheme. In August 2026, sales of Oil Marketing Companies dropped 16 percent MoM to 1. 26 million tonnes due to high retail prices. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

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