Karachi: Sales of petroleum products in November have reached a 25-month high of 1.58 million tonnes due to a crackdown on smuggled Iranian petroleum products and a significant drop in prices.
The increase in sales of petroleum products is expected to increase government tax collection, which will provide financial support to the government.
According to a report by Arif Habib Limited, sales of petroleum products in November have reached their highest level since October 2022.
Tahir Abbas, Head of Research at AHL, said that smuggled Iranian products were mostly being sold in Sindh, South Punjab and Balochistan. As a result of strict operations, smuggling has decreased, which has increased the sale of conventional petrol.
He said that no levy is collected on smuggled fuel, which causes loss to the treasury and is not even counted in the GDP, while the reduction in fuel prices has also had a positive impact on sales.
He said that the prices of petrol and diesel have decreased by 12 and 15 percent respectively on an annual basis, while sales have increased by 17 percent, which was 0.67 million tons in November. Tahir Abbas stressed on continuing operations against smuggled products.
