Exchange rate adjustment for PSO drives hike in HSD price
On Thursday, the Finance Division announced a Rs 1.48 per litre increase in High-Speed Diesel (HSD) price, while petrol's price decreased by Rs 7.54 per litre.
Additional factors contributing to the increase in HSD prices include an enhanced petroleum levy, raised from Rs 74.51 to Rs 77.01 per litre. The petroleum levy on petrol was also raised from Rs 75.52 to Rs 78.02 per litre.
Petrol price cut by Rs7.54, HSD's up by Rs1.48
A presidential ordinance was issued on 15th April 2025, which lifted the 70 rupee per litre cap on the petroleum levy. Finance Bill 2025-26 removed the relevant clause of the Fifth Schedule thereby empowering the Federal Government to change the levy and pre-empting the need for an extension of the presidential ordinance.
A carbon levy has also been imposed at the rate of 2.50 rupees per litre on both HSD and petrol, a condition for the $ 1.4 billion Resilience and Sustainability Facility from the International Monetary Fund.
High-Speed Diesel saw a minor 20 paisa increase in the Inter-Freight Equalization Margin (IFEM), from Rs 6.04 to Rs 6.24 per litre while IFEM on petrol decreased by 19 paisa - from Rs 8.89 to Rs 8.70 per litre.
Average of Platts with incidentals and duty was raised on HSD from Rs 177.89 to Rs 180.36 per litre. Whereas, the average of Platts with incidentals & duty on petrol decreased by Rs 8.26 per litre from Rs 167.51 to Rs 159.25 per litre.
On year to year basis, petrol sales rose by 6 percent to 7.6 million tons, supported by higher automobile sales and relatively lower fuel prices compared to 2024. HSD volumes grew 10 percent to 6.89 million tons, benefiting from improved agricultural and transport sector activity during parts of the year, although seasonal variations remained a factor.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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