POL prices may go up by Rs7 per litre from August 1

ISLAMABAD: In an expected but painful development, the prices of POL products are expected to rise by Rs7 per litre from August 1, 2012 for the next fortnight, a senior official at the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources said. This is because the price of crude oil has increased in the global market by $4.5 per barrel.

According to sources, the Gulf market has witnessed a substantial hike in the price of crude oil and petroleum products in the last eight days and seen the price of crude oil rise by $4.50 per barrel, from $96 to $100.5.

As a result, Ogra has completed its preliminary work on price revision under which the price of petrol is likely to be increased by Rs5.90 per litre, HOBC Rs7 per litre, kerosene oil Rs4.50 per litre, HSD (high speed diesel) Rs4.78 per litre and LDO (light diesel oil) Rs4.65 per litre.

Ogra will finalise the POL pricing on July 27 after deciding the inland equalisation charges on the transposition of POL products across the country.

According to sources, Rs5.90 per litre increase in the price of petrol will lead to an increase in the price of CNG by Rs4 per kg. “As diesel and CNG are heavily used in the transportation of goods and vegetables across the country and within the districts, the increase will result in further inflation, multiplying the economic miseries to a large extent,” they said.

The price revision will increase the impact of inflation on the poorer segments of the society in the ongoing month of Ramzan at a time when prices of all kitchen items and vegetables have gone up because of the massive hoarding of daily use items, which inefficient and corrupt provincial and local administrations have been unable to control.