What happened
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced a reduction of Rs135 per litre in the price of high-speed diesel (HSD) and Rs12 per litre in petrol in a televised address on the night of Friday 10 April 2026, with the Petroleum Division notifying the new rates effective from 11 April for the week ending 17 April.
The ex-depot price of HSD fell to Rs385.54 per litre from Rs520.35, a cut of about 26 per cent, while petrol dropped to Rs366.58 per litre from Rs378.41. The price of kerosene was reduced by Rs17.33 to Rs450.15 per litre and light diesel oil by Rs25.31 to Rs369.72 per litre.
Why it matters
The cut is the largest single reduction since fuel prices surged after US-Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February, when petrol and diesel climbed from about Rs266 and Rs281 per litre. Global petrol prices had risen from around US$80 to US$150 a barrel before cooling to the US$94–96 range, and high-speed diesel fell back from a peak of about US$238 a barrel.
Sharif said he had been advised to retain part of the fall in international prices to recover roughly Rs129 billion the government had spent on fuel subsidies over the previous month, but rejected the proposal. “I considered it my moral and political responsibility to pass on the full benefit to the people,” he said. Official sources also attributed the unusually large diesel cut to a correction in the pricing formula that had given local refineries an undue benefit as the gap between local and imported products widened during the war.
The reduction is expected to ease logistics and agricultural costs at the start of the wheat harvest, and the government said targeted subsidies for two-wheelers, public transport and agriculture would continue. Reported support includes Rs70,000 for trucks, Rs100,000 for passenger buses, Rs40,000 for mini-buses and wagons, Rs80,000 for cargo vehicles and Rs35,000 for delivery vans.
Tax rates were left unchanged. Petrol carries total taxes of about Rs107 per litre, including an Rs81 petroleum levy, Rs24 in customs duty and a Rs2.50 climate support levy, while HSD carries roughly Rs39 per litre.
What is still uncertain
The government did not say how long the revised prices would remain in place. The two-week US-Iran ceasefire that helped cool oil markets is temporary, and the sustainability of the reductions depends on whether the truce holds and whether the Strait of Hormuz reopens to normal shipping. It is also unclear whether the pricing-formula correction that produced the deep diesel cut will be made permanent or revisited.
Sources & reporting notes
This article is a synthesis of published material, not original reporting. Sources were reviewed on 11 April 2026.
- Dawn (Khaleeq Kiani) — Diesel price cut by Rs135; petrol sees drop of Rs12Published 11 April 2026 · The new prices, the pricing-formula correction, the subsidy figure and the tax breakdown.
- Business Recorder — HSD price slashed by Rs135, petrol's by Rs12Published 11 April 2026 · The Petroleum Division notification, targeted vehicle subsidies and global price context.
