What happened
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Friday that the government would cut the price of high-speed diesel by Rs135 per litre and petrol by Rs12 per litre, effective from midnight, in a televised address to the nation.
Under the revised rates notified for Saturday, 11 April, diesel will sell at Rs385 per litre and petrol at Rs366, Bol News reported. The notification shared by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also reduced kerosene by Rs17.33 to Rs450.15 per litre and light diesel oil by Rs25.31 to Rs369.72.
Sharif said the reduction followed a fall in international oil prices and that he had promised to pass the benefit on to consumers. He said the government had spent Rs129 billion to control inflation and rejected proposals to divert any part of the relief towards fiscal adjustments.
Why it matters
Diesel is the fuel that drives freight, farming, tube wells and back-up power generation, so a cut of this size feeds directly into transport and food costs. Petrol falls by only Rs12, a smaller correction, after the government cut the petroleum levy by Rs80 a week earlier, which had lowered petrol to Rs378 per litre while leaving diesel untouched.
The announcement marks another turn in weeks of war-driven energy management. After the Middle East conflict began on 28 February, the government raised petrol and diesel by Rs55 per litre on 6 March and announced austerity measures on 9 March, before rejecting several further proposed increases and shifting to levy cuts and targeted subsidies as international prices eased.
Sharif said subsidies for motorcycles, public transport and goods transport would continue and that reducing costs for farmers remained a priority. He described the wider shift in the Gulf from conflict towards dialogue, including the US-Iran ceasefire and the talks Pakistan is hosting, as the context for the relief.
What is still uncertain
It is not clear how long the rates can be sustained. The cuts depend on international prices staying low and on a ceasefire that remains fragile, and the government has not given a figure for the revenue it will forgo. Diesel’s larger reduction also leaves less room to absorb another external price shock, while the future of the motorcycle, farmer and transport subsidies has not been tied to a fixed period.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published material, not original reporting. Sources were reviewed on 10 April 2026.
- Bol News — "PM Shehbaz announces major fuel price cut"Published 10 April 2026 · Reports the televised address, the Rs135 diesel and Rs12 petrol cuts, the new Rs385 and Rs366 prices, the midnight start, the Rs129bn inflation spending and the continuation of transport and motorcycle subsidies.
- Dawn — "Govt reduces petrol price by Rs12 per litre, HSD by Rs135"Published 10 April 2026 · Confirms the rates, the kerosene and light diesel reductions in Dar's notification, and the sequence of wartime fuel decisions, including the Rs80 levy cut a week earlier.
