Karachi
\nAbdul Rehman Fudda, President of the SITE Association of Industry, has warned that the extraordinary hike in petroleum product (POL) prices will have a \u201c360-degree impact\u201d on the economy, driving up costs across all sectors and severely damaging industrial and export competitiveness.
\nMr. Fudda said the latest increase was not triggered by international oil market trends but by government policy decisions. He explained that the withdrawal of the Price Differential Claim (PDC) subsidy of Rs95.59 per litre and an additional petroleum levy of Rs55.24 per litre had together imposed a burden of Rs150.83 per litre on consumers.
\n\u201cThis is purely a result of levies, taxes, and war-related conditions,\u201d he noted. Contrary to the hike, the ex-refinery base cost has actually declined.
\n\u201cThe net ex-refinery price fell from Rs190.94 on March 7 to Rs177.36 on April 2 \u2014 a reduction of Rs13.58 per litre,\u201d if subsidy doesn\u2019t withdraw, Fudda pointed out.
\nHe recalled that when the government raised petrol prices on March 7, SITE had urged withdrawal of levies and taxes, which then stood at Rs118\u2013121 per litre. \u201cNow, levies and taxes alone amount to about Rs265 per litre,\u201d he said.
\nThe SITE chief warned that the steep increase would badly damage industries, particularly export-oriented production, at a time when exports are already declining. \u201cThis will not only erode foreign exchange earnings but also accelerate unemployment,\u201d he cautioned.
\nAbdul Rehman Fudda further stressed that the common man, especially labourers and the service class, would struggle for survival under the new burden. \u201cAnarchy will rise, and the government itself will be weakened by this decision,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Karachi Abdul Rehman Fudda, President of the SITE Association of Industry, has warned that the extraordinary hike in petroleum product (POL) prices will have a \u201c360-degree impact\u201d on the economy, driving up costs across all sectors and severely damaging industrial and export competitiveness. Mr. Fudda said the latest increase was not triggered by international oil […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-539891","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-business"},"yoast_head":"\n