The caretaker government on Saturday slashed the price of petrol by Rs8 per litre and that of high-speed diesel by Rs11 per litre for the next fortnight.

According to a notification from the Ministry of Finance, the new price of petrol is Rs323.38 and Rs318.18 for HSD.

It said the price revision was due to the variations in the international prices of petroleum products and the improvement in the exchange rate.

Previously, the prices of HSD and petrol were estimated to be reduced by about Rs15-19 per litre for the Oct 1-15 period mainly because of the rupee’s appreciation.

The Pakistani rupee appreciated throughout the outgoing week, seeing an improvement of 1.4 per cent against the USD in the interbank market, and is on track to be the best-performing currency this month.

Last week, Caretaker Commerce and Industries Minister Gohar Ejaz had said he was hopeful that the nation would receive “good news” regarding petrol prices on October 1.

The prices of the two essential fuels were last cut in mid-July when petrol was reduced by Rs9 per litre to Rs253 and diesel by Rs7 per litre to Rs253.50.

Between Aug 15 and Sept 15, petrol and high-speed diesel prices jumped by Rs58.43 and Rs55.83 per litre, respectively.

At present, the GST is zero on all petroleum products, but the government is charging Rs60 per litre petroleum development levy on petrol and Rs50 per litre each on HSD and high-octane blending component and 95 RON (Research Octane Number) petrol. The government is also charging about Rs22-23 per litre customs duty on petrol and HSD.