ISLAMABAD: The petroleum prices are expected to go down from October 1 (tomorrow) following the stability in the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar, sources told on Saturday.
The international market prices have also decreased, said the sources.
The sources added that the Ministry of Finance will make a final decision on the petroleum prices after consultations with caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar.
Earlier this week, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) advised against speculating on the price of petroleum products after federal ministers claimed the POL rates would likely be reduced in the next fortnightly review.
Caretaker Federal Commerce and Industries Minister Gohar Ejaz and Interim Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Murtaza Solangi said last week that POL prices would be reduced after the rupee gained ground against the dollar.
In the last two weeks, the rupee has gained around Rs19 against the greenback, prompting the claims, as Pakistan, being an importer of POL, purchases the commodity in dollars.
In the previous fortnightly review, the caretaker government had jacked up the petrol price by more than Rs26 and diesel by over Rs17 per litre to Rs331.38 and Rs329.18, respectively — the highest in history.
The authority mentioned that petroleum product prices in Pakistan are primarily dependent on international market prices and the exchange rate of the Dollar.
In recent times, it said, there has been a surge in international petroleum prices, while the dollar-to-rupee exchange rate has shown improvement.
But, the authority said, it is essential to highlight that there is still one week remaining before the announcement of new prices.
“Therefore, any speculation about price increases or decreases during this period is highly speculative and could potentially disrupt the smooth functioning of the oil supply chain.”
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