KARACHI: Business leaders have raised serious concerns over the recent hike in petroleum product prices, warning that it will cripple industrial activity, drive up production costs, and erode the global competitiveness of Pakistani exports.
The government has raised petrol prices by Rs5.36 and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs11.37 per litre, bringing the new rates to Rs272.15 and Rs284.35, respectively.
Junaid Naqi, President of the Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI), said that soaring input costs, including fuel, electricity, and gas, coupled with excessive taxation, are making it impossible for traders and manufacturers to survive. “This is sheer injustice,” he said, urging the government to reverse the fuel price hike to prevent factory closures, rising inflation, and widespread job losses.
He added that the burden of higher fuel prices ultimately falls on the public, with immediate increases in freight and public transport fares.
Mian Zahid Hussain, Chairman of the FPCCI’s Advisory Board, called the price hike a “ticking time bomb” that will further strain middle- and lower-income households. He warned that the diesel increase will impact agriculture, food supply chains, and transport costs, exacerbating the inflationary crisis.
