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KARACHI: Pakistan has kept the price of petrol unchanged for the next fortnight while slashing the price of high-speed diesel by Rs3 per liter, a notification by the Finance Division said on Sunday, saying the decision had been taken based on the recommendations of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) and relevant authorities. 

This is the second consecutive time the government has slashed the price of high-speed diesel but kept petrol prices unchanged. On Aug. 15, the Finance Division’s notification announced that the government had slashed the price of high-speed diesel by Rs12.84 but kept the petrol price unchanged. 

The new price of high-speed diesel has been set at Rs269.99 per liter while the price of light diesel oil has been slashed by Rs2.40 rupees to Rs159.76 per liter. The new price of superior kerosene oil has been kept at Rs178.81 after the government slashed it by Rs1.46 per liter. Meanwhile, the government has kept the price of petrol unchanged for the next fortnight at Rs264.61 per liter. 

“The government has revised petroleum product prices for the fortnight starting tomorrow, in line with the recommendations of OGRA and the ministries concerned,” the Finance Division said in its notification on Sunday.

The new prices come into effect from Monday. 

Fuel prices in Pakistan are adjusted every two weeks and are influenced by global oil market trends, currency fluctuations and changes in domestic taxation. The mechanism ensures that the net impact of changes in import costs is passed on to consumers, helping sustain the country’s fuel supply chain.

However, the latest revision in prices is unlikely to have a major effect on citizens as petrol is mostly used for private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers. Diesel, on the other hand, powers heavy vehicles used for transportation of good across the South Asian country. 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday met with world leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkiye’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on the sidelines of a two-day summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) Council of Heads of State (CHS), Sharif’s office said.

Sharif, who arrived on a six-day visit to China this week, was welcomed by President Xi Jinping at a banquet organized for leaders participating in the 25th SCO Council of Heads of States meeting in Tianjin.

The prime minister also held informal meetings with Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Azerbaijan’s Ilham Aliyev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Turkmenistan’s Serdar Berdimuhamedov, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.

“Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was seen receiving extraordinary warmth from world leaders,” Sharif’s office said. “The closeness observed in these meetings reflects the brotherly and friendly relations between Pakistan and these countries.”

The SCO comprises China, India, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Belarus, with 16 more countries affiliated as observers or “dialogue partners.”

China has long sought to present the regional group as a counterweight to Western-led power blocs and has pushed for greater collaboration between its member states.

On Sunday, Sharif held a meeting with Turkiye’s Erdogan, according to the former’s office. The two leaders condemned Israel’s “genocidal” policies in Gaza and vowed to advocate for Palestinian rights at all international platforms.

“The two sides exchanged views on key regional and international developments,” Sharif’s office said. “They expressed grave concern over the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza and reaffirmed their shared commitment to using international platforms to advocate for the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and to condemn the ongoing Israeli aggression and genocidal policies.”

Sharif, who arrived in China on Saturday, will remain in the country till Sept. 4 to hold talks with senior Chinese leadership, including the country’s President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Li Qiang, an earlier statement from the foreign office said.

China has long been Pakistan’s largest investor and its closest strategic ally, anchored by the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Both sides are working to advance into “CPEC 2.0,” focused on industrialization, agriculture, energy and connectivity.

During the visit, the Pakistani prime minister will also chair the second Pakistan-China B2B Investment Conference in Beijing on Sept. 4 to boost trade and investment ties, the PM Office said in an earlier statement on Saturday.