Overview
- The federal government now delegates daily price setting to the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA), which uses a seven‑day rolling average of international refined‑product benchmarks to calculate domestic petrol and diesel rates.
- After fast, successive revisions in late July, notifications settled petrol at Rs336.15 per litre and high‑speed diesel at Rs393.04 per litre for July 31, following prior moves on July 29 and July 30 that raised and briefly lowered rates.
- Domestic retail prices reflect more than crude oil: they incorporate refined‑product import costs, industry margins, the petroleum levy, climate support levy and customs duty, which mute crude price declines and limit immediate relief to consumers.
- Lawmakers, transport groups and dealers have criticised the daily reviews for creating uncertainty and raising freight costs, while the Petroleum Minister says the IMF will not allow cuts to the petroleum levy without alternative revenue sources.
- A prime‑minister‑led committee endorsed a phased deregulation plan, OGRA published a transparency dashboard showing its methodology, and ministers signalled possible targeted fuel subsidies only if the Russia–US/Iran conflict keeps pushing global prices higher.