ISLAMABAD: Finance Minis­ter Ishaq Dar has announced that the price of petrol will remain unchanged at Rs262 per litre for the fortnight up to July 15, while the high-speed diesel (HSD) will cost Rs7.5 more per litre as its price has been increased to Rs260.5.

Possibly due to the Eid holidays, the government did not determine the prices of all fuels, as the finance minister did not announce any changes in the prices of kerosene and light-diesel oil.

Mr Dar said on Friday the decision to increase diesel price to Rs260.5 per litre from Rs253 was made considering the rising prices of petroleum products in the international market over the past couple of days.

At the same time, the finance min­ister said that the Oil and Gas Reg­ulatory Authority (Ogra) has made efforts to minimise the burden of price increases on the masses.

Meanwhile, oil dealers have expressed concern that the increase in diesel prices may lead to an increase in the smuggling of the commodity into the country.

It is estimated that around 8,000 to 10,000 tonnes of HSD are being smuggled into Pakistan on a daily basis, while the demand for Iranian petrol is low due to its lower quality.

Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2023