Supreme Court orders Pakistan to reduce retail prices by 20%

Pakistan reduced retail fuel prices by some 2.5% in May for the first time in five months, after the country’s Supreme Court directed the government to slash prices by 20%. The government reduced the price of gasoline by PkRs1.45 (US$0.02) per liter to PkRs56.21 (US$0.69) per liter, the price of premium gasoline by PkRs1.80 (US$0.02) per liter to PkRs70.28 (US$0.87) per liter and the price of high speed diesel by PkRs1.47 (US$0.02) per liter to PkRs55.67 (US$0.69) per liter, Pakistan’s Ministry of Petroleum said. Despite the price cuts, Pakistan continues to collect a petroleum development levy of PkRs13.46 (US$0.17) for each liter of gasoline sold, PkRs17.56 (US$0.22) for every liter of premium gasoline sold and PkRs10.43 (US$0.13) for every liter of high speed diesel sold. For the first nine months of the current fiscal year starting July 2008, the Pakistan government has collected PkRs77 billion (US$949.45 million) in petroleum development levies. (May 22, 2009)