KARACHI (Kashmir English): Amid the hike in the price of jet fuel announced by the government, domestic and international flights may become costlier for Pakistanis.
A record hike of 82 per cent in the price of jet fuel used in commercial flights has been announced by the Pakistani government. After the announcement of the hike in the prices of petroleum products used in cars and other vehicles, the price of jet fuel has alsoincreased by Rs154 per litre.
The new price of jet fuel is Rs342.37 per litre. This increase in Pakistan domestic flights fare will have a drastic impact on the existing rates of the tickets used by Pakistanis.
At the moment, the airspace in the Middle East is closed due to missile and drone attacks between Israel and Iran, leading the airline and tourism industries to a lot of pressure as thousands of flights are being cancelled every day.
Hike in Petrol Prices
The federal government has increased the diesel and petrol prices by Rs55 per litre starting tonight, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said, citing the surge in global prices due to the ongoing Iran-Israel and US military conflict.
Addressing the press conference along with Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, the petroleum minister said that the new petrol price has been fixed at Rs321.17 per litre, effective from March 7, 2026.
Similarly, diesel price, with an increase of Rs55 per litre, would now be available for Rs 335.86 per litre from 275.7.
According to the sources, government officials told the Prime Minister in a briefing today that due to the sudden rise in global prices, an increase of about Rs 110 per liter is necessary in Pakistan.
However, the Prime Minister, while giving relief to the public, instructed that the increase should be reduced and limited to about Rs 55 to 60 per liter, sources said.
According to experts, if fuel prices in Pakistan are not aligned with global market levels, smuggling may increase due to cheap fuel. In such a case, the risk of fuel being illegally diverted to Afghanistan and India increases, which may cause further economic loss to Pakistan.
Weekly revision of petrol prices approved
Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had approved the weekly revision of prices of petroleum products in view of the changing regional situation, Geo News reported.
Currently, the revision of prices of petroleum products is being done after every fortnight. The federal cabinet gives final approval to the price revision summary submitted by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra).
A meeting of the Committee on Petroleum Products Stock and Consumption was held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in which the Finance Minister briefed the Prime Minister.
According to sources, the committee submitted recommendations regarding the determination of weekly prices of petroleum products, which were approved by the premier.
Sources said that the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) will give recommendations regarding the weekly prices of petroleum products. After approval from the ECC, the federal cabinet will give final approval to the summary of petroleum products.
