• PPDA calls off nationwide strike planned from today
• Higher margin to take effect from Sept 1

ISLAMABAD: In a move aimed at averting a nationwide strike by petroleum dealers, the Economic Coordination Com­mittee (ECC) of the federal cabinet on Friday approved a 15.5 per cent increase in dealers’ margins on both petrol and high-speed diesel, following which the dealers called off their protest planned from Saturday.

The decision raises the dealers’ margin on both fuels by Rs1.34 per litre, from Rs8.64 to Rs9.98 per litre. The revised margin is scheduled to take effect from Sept 1.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb chaired the ECC meeting virtually, while Finance Secretary Imdadullah Bosal attended in person at the Finance Division. The meeting was convened on a public holiday after petroleum dealers announced a nationwide strike from Aug 15, prompting the government to take up the matter on an urgent basis.

The Finance Division’s statement did not disclose the exact increase in dealers’ margins. However, officials confirmed that the ECC had approved the proposal submitted by the Petroleum Division.

“Yes, the ECC approved the same increase proposed by the Petroleum Division,” a senior official privy to the meeting told Dawn.

According to the summary submitted to the ECC, the dealers’ margin was proposed to be increased by Rs1.34 per litre to Rs9.98.

Soon after the decision, the Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) called off its plan to launch a nationwide strike from Saturday. The association had earlier given the federal government a 72-hour ultimatum, accusing it of failing to honour assurances made by the petroleum minister regarding its demands.

The dealers had sought replacement of the existing fixed margin with a variable margin linked to the retail prices of petrol and diesel, proposing that it be set at 8pc of the retail price of both fuels.

According to official sources, acceptance of that demand would have raised the dealers’ margin to around Rs26 per litre on petrol and Rs30 per litre on diesel at current retail prices, resulting in a substantially higher burden on consumers.

The ECC instead approved the 15.51pc increase in the fixed margin.

The margin of oil marketing companies (OMCs) remains unchanged at Rs7.87 per litre on both petrol and diesel. A proposal to increase the OMC margin by Rs1.22 per litre remains linked to the implementation of digitisation measures.

An official Finance Division statement said the ECC considered a summary submitted by the Petroleum Division and deliberated on the revision of dealers’ margins on motor spirit and high-speed diesel (HSD).

In December 2025, the ECC had approved an increase of Rs2.56 per litre in dealers’ margins on petrol and diesel. The decision was subsequently modified by the federal cabinet, prompting the PPDA to demand its implementation.

The shift from fortnightly to daily petroleum price revisions added another demand from dealers, who sought to link their margins to retail prices. The government, however, decided to retain the daily pricing mechanism.

Under the ECC’s December 2025 decision, 50pc of the proposed increase was to take effect from Dec 15, subject to a declining trend in petroleum prices, while the remaining 50pc was linked to achievement of digitisation targets set by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra).

On Dec 23, the federal cabinet modified the decision, making the increase conditional on completion of digitisation targets by OMCs and petroleum dealers.

With the digitisation drive still under way, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik held a meeting on July 22 with representatives of the All Pakistan Petrol Pump Owners Association and the PPDA following an earlier strike call. Senior Petroleum Division officials and the Ogra chairman also attended.

The dealers urged the government to delink the increase in their margins from digitisation, arguing that implementation of the initiative was primarily the responsibility of OMCs.

They also reiterated their demand that the fixed margin of Rs8.64 per litre be replaced with a margin equivalent to 8pc of the retail price of petrol and diesel.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2026