On the eve of the new year, the federal government announced yet another hike in the prices of petroleum products. According to a notification issued by the Finance Division on Friday, the price of petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) will rise by Rs4 per litre for the first 15 days of January 2022. The new prices would come into effect from January 1. The increase has been announced to meet the petroleum levy target agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). As per the notification, the price of kerosene has been increased by Rs3.95, and light diesel oil (LDO) by Rs4.15 per litre. After the increase, the price of petrol will go up from the previous Rs140.82 per litre to Rs144.82 per litre, while the price of high speed diesel will jump to Rs141.62 per litre from the previous Rs137.62 per litre. The rate of light diesel oil will go up to Rs111.06 per litre from Rs107.06 per litre. Similarly, the price of kerosene will go up from Rs109.53 to Rs113.53 per litre. In the fortnight review of petroleum products’ prices, the prime minister has rejected the proposal of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) for an increase in prices of petroleum products and advised to increase only Rs4 per litre to meet the petroleum levy target agreed with the IMF,” the notification read. The Finance Division also mentioned that sales tax on petrol and diesel has been adjusted downwards as compared to December 16, 2021 to keep the prices lower.