ISLAMABAD: Following the rising tension in the Middle East and Israel’s attacks on Iranian gas facilities, crude oil prices have increased significantly in the global market, which is likely to have an impact on other importing economies including Pakistan.
In the global market, US crude oil has reached around $98 per barrel while British Brent crude oil has reached $108 per barrel. In recent days, crude oil prices have seen a rapid increase and have increased by around 10 percent in just a few days.
On March 15 this month, when petrol prices were maintained, US crude oil was at $96, which has now increased to $98, while British Brent crude oil was at $101, which has now increased to $108 per barrel.
Due to this increase, the possibility of an increase in the prices of petroleum products in Pakistan has also increased. Although the government has indicated that prices will be maintained, the current global trend is indicating the opposite.
The government has also changed the mechanism for reviewing the prices of petroleum products, under which prices are now being reviewed every 7 days instead of every 15 days. The next change in this regard is expected on March 22.
Experts say that in view of the continuous increase in the global market, there is no possibility of a reduction in petrol prices on the occasion of Eid, while on the contrary, the fear of a price increase has become more obvious.
According to economic analysts, if oil prices remain high at the global level, not only will petrol be expensive but it may also lead to a further increase in inflation, which will put an additional financial burden on the public.
