The caretaker government on Sunday slashed the price of petrol by Rs40 per litre and that of high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs15 per litre for the next fortnight.

According to a notification from the Ministry of Finance, the new price of petrol is Rs283.38 and Rs303.18 for HSD.

It said the price revision was due to the variations in the international prices of petroleum products and the improvement in the exchange rate.

This is the second time in a row that the caretaker government is reducing petroleum prices after three fortnightly incre­ases.

In the previous change, it had cut the price of petrol by Rs8 per litre and that of high-speed diesel by Rs11 per litre.

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Between Aug 15 and Sept 15, petrol and high-speed diesel prices had risen by Rs58.43 and Rs55.83 per litre, respectively, to historic highs of Rs331-333 per litre at the retail stage.

Earlier this week, the prices of HSD and petrol were projected to fall below Rs300 per litre in the coming review due to a significant drop in global oil rates and the rupee’s appreciation.

The dollar lost another 93 paise on Thursday to close at Rs278.58 in the interbank market, which did not react to the disappointing figure of remittances.

However, there were also chances of the interim government deciding otherwise, particularly in the case of high-speed diesel, which presently carries the petroleum development levy of Rs50 per litre compared to Rs60 on petrol.

The government aims to charge about Rs869 billion in levy on petroleum products during the current fiscal year’s budget target and commitments made with the Inter­national Monetary Fund (IMF).

Petrol and diesel prices have stayed above Rs300 per litre since September 1. Along with costly electricity, fuel has been the key driver of high consumer prices, pushing inflation to 31.4 per cent in September. Against this backdrop, the reduction could halt the rising inflationary trend.