{"id":98441,"date":"2026-01-26T10:53:02","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T05:53:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/?p=98441"},"modified":"2026-01-26T10:53:02","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T05:53:02","slug":"pbf-warns-soaring-fuel-prices-threaten-economy-households","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/business\/pbf-warns-soaring-fuel-prices-threaten-economy-households\/","title":{"rendered":"PBF warns soaring fuel prices threaten economy & households"},"content":{"rendered":"

KARACHI: The Pakistan Business Forum<\/a> (PBF) has expressed deep concern over the continuous increase in the prices of petroleum products in Pakistan and the massive burden it is placing on households, businesses and the national economy.<\/p>\n

Despite international Brent crude trading at around USD 64 per barrel, the actual price of crude oil after freight, port charges, and refining being around PKR 125-126 per liter, consumers are forced to pay significantly higher prices at the pump due to excessive government taxes and related charges.<\/p>\n

PBF President Khawaja Mehboob-ur-Rehman said that as per the latest fortnightly notification, the price of petrol is PKR 253.17 per liter and the price of high-speed diesel is PKR 257.08 per liter, which includes approximately PKR 94-97 per liter of government taxes and levies, which includes approximately Rs. The levy, PKR 2.5 per litre as Climate Support Levy, and PKR 12-15 per litre as customs and other charges, while the standard 18% GST is not currently applicable on petrol and diesel. In addition, consumers pay dealer margins of around PKR 8-9 per litre, which further increases the final price at the pump.<\/p>\n

The PBF president said that this heavy taxation and margin structure means that around 40 per cent of the fuel price consists of government levies, which will have to bear a disproportionate burden on the public which directly increases transportation costs, increases the prices of goods and services, increases electricity and utility bills, and reduces household purchasing power, affecting the income of farmers, daily wage earners, small businesses and small farmers.<\/p>\n

The economic impacts are profound, with high petroleum prices driving up inflation, reducing industrial competitiveness, discouraging investment, and slowing overall economic growth.<\/p>\n

Similarly, the agricultural sector is particularly vulnerable, as diesel is crucial for tractors, irrigation pumps, and the transportation of produce. Rising fuel costs increase operational costs for farmers, reduce profits, discourage mechanization, and ultimately contribute to high food prices, affecting all Pakistanis.<\/p>\n

For businesses, high fuel prices and taxes increase the cost of goods, transportation, and services, reducing competitiveness domestically and internationally, while creating uncertainty that deters new investment and limits job creation.<\/p>\n

The Pakistan Business Forum urges the Government of Pakistan to rationalize petroleum levy in line with global crude oil prices, reduce the Petroleum Development Levy to provide immediate relief, adopt a transparent fuel pricing mechanism, treat petroleum tax as a tool for economic stability rather than a short-term revenue tool, and support the targeted sector or sectors. Maintain productivity and stabilize food costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the actual price of fuel after refining is around PKR 126 per liter, consumers are still forced to pay PKR 253-257 per liter at the pump, the burden becomes unsustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Excessive petroleum taxes and high dealer margins are now a significant drag on households, agriculture, and businesses, fueling inflation, discouraging investment, and hindering economic growth.<\/p>\n

Urgent corrective measures are needed to alleviate the suffering of the people and restore economic activity in the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KARACHI: The Pakistan Business Forum (PBF) has expressed deep concern over the continuous increase in the prices of petroleum products in Pakistan and the massive burden it is placing on households, businesses and the national economy. Despite international Brent crude trading at around USD 64 per barrel, the actual price of crude oil after freight, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":27708,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,13446,9],"tags":[11359,20932],"class_list":["post-98441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-featured","category-latest-news","tag-fuel-prices","tag-pakistan-business-forum"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98441","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98441"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98441\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":98443,"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98441\/revisions\/98443"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98441"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98441"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyausaf.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98441"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}