Pakistanis feel 'crushed' under fuel price hikes as Middle East conflict spirals

Pakistanis felt the pinch as the government on Thursday (April 2) hiked consumer prices for diesel and petrol sharply, its second increase in less than a month, amid rising global oil prices spurred by the conflict in the Middle East.

The price of diesel would be raised by 54.9% to 520.35 rupees ($1.88) per litre, and petrol by 42.7% to 458.40 rupees per litre.

It was inevitable to raise the prices due to the international market prices going out of control after the US-Iran war, Pakistan's petroleum minister, Ali Pervaiz Malik, said in a news conference telecast on state television, along with the country's finance minister.

Malik said the government had given a subsidy of 129 billion rupees in the last three weeks, but it was no longer affordable due to the hike in international oil prices.

Lahore resident Mohammad Haris said whatever good the government had done was undone after the outbreak of the Iran war, and that the poor man had been crushed. Karachi resident Mohammad Kashif said the price hike was an injustice, adding that instead of shifting its burden onto the public, the government should have borne some of it itself.

Last month, the South Asian nation raised consumer prices for diesel and petrol by about 20%, citing higher oil prices driven by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

The decision is likely to ripple through to higher inflation and hit Pakistan's impoverished population. Pakistan imports oil mainly from Saudi Arabia and the UAE through the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. oil prices jumped more than 11% on Thursday, while Brent soared over 7% in volatile trading a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said military operations would be intensified.

($1 = 278.9000 Pakistani rupees)

-Rehan Sheikh, Waseem Sattar, Yawar Malik/Reuters