WASIM IQBAL

ISLAMABAD: The government on Friday announced revision in fuel prices, which will remain applicable during next three days (Sep 26-28).

According to an official notification, the ex-depot price of petrol has been increased by Rs2.02 per litre from Rs389.28 to Rs391.30 per litre. However, the price of High Speed Diesel (HSD) has been reduced by Rs3.59 per litre to Rs408.53 per litre.

The upward surge in petrol prices is primarily driven by an increase in import premiums and freight charges, which climbed to USD 16.36 per barrel from the previous rate of USD 14.12 per barrel.

The Petroleum Division has announced ex-depot prices for petrol and HSD, based on the working of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) 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 129.54 per barrel (compared to USD 130.73 per bbl on September 25), while HSD decreased to USD 115.34 per barrel from USD 117.44 per bbl.

The 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 increased to Rs280.64 per litre from Rs278.72 per litre, whereas, cost of HSD price has decreased to Rs301.53 per litre from Rs305.21 per litre.