{"id":13462,"date":"2026-04-30T13:28:52","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T09:58:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/?p=13462"},"modified":"2026-04-30T13:28:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T09:58:52","slug":"pakistans-weekly-oil-bill-soars-to-800m-amid-middle-east-conflict-pm-shehbaz-reveals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/?p=13462&lang=en","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan’s Weekly Oil Bill Soars to $800M Amid Middle East Conflict, PM Shehbaz Reveals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Wednesday that Pakistan’s weekly oil import bill has surged to an alarming $800 million<\/strong>, a direct consequence of the escalating oil crisis stemming from the ongoing Middle East conflict.<\/p>\n

Global fuel prices have experienced a dramatic increase over the past two months, largely attributable to the paralysis of shipping through the vital Strait of Hormuz. This disruption follows joint strikes launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on February 28.<\/p>\n

During a federal cabinet meeting held today, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif lauded the diligent efforts of Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik in addressing the fuel crisis exacerbated by the conflict involving Iran, noting that the situation now appears “satisfactory.”<\/p>\n

The Prime Minister further highlighted the sharp rise in global market fuel prices, stating, “Our weekly pre-war oil bill stood at approximately $300 million<\/em>, and today, it has escalated to $800 million<\/em>.”<\/p>\n

He also informed the cabinet that the nation’s fuel consumption “had decreased compared to previous weeks,” emphasizing that the government is continuously monitoring the situation.<\/p>\n

“Consultations are actively underway with provincial governments to extend crucial fuel subsidies,” the premier informed the cabinet.<\/p>\n

PM Shehbaz further elaborated that Pakistan had been making significant progress on the macroeconomic front prior to the outbreak of the conflict. However, he lamented, “with the war, our efforts of two years have witnessed a significant setback.”<\/p>\n

Despite these challenges, the premier underscored that Pakistan’s federal reserves “retain their levels,” even after fulfilling debt obligations, including a substantial $3.45 billion<\/strong> deposit repayment to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).<\/p>\n

He extended his gratitude to the leadership of Saudi Arabia for recently transferring a $3 billion<\/strong> deposit and agreeing to extend its existing $5 billion<\/strong> financial facility for an additional three years.<\/p>\n

In his comprehensive address, the Prime Minister also updated the cabinet on Pakistan’s extensive diplomatic outreach concerning the US-Iran conflict, recalling the inaugural round of the “Islamabad Talks” held on April 11-12.<\/p>\n

“Many diplomatic efforts were undertaken,” he affirmed, commending Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, alongside Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, for their unwavering dedication in “trying their best to restore peace in the region.”<\/p>\n

“Following these efforts, a ceasefire extension was subsequently announced,” the premier stated, referencing the April 21 announcement made by US President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

The Prime Minister also highlighted the recent visits of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to Pakistan. He recounted Araghchi’s assurance before his return to Iran: “I would provide you with an answer after holding consultations with the Iranian leadership.”<\/p>\n

The esteemed Iranian diplomat conducted two brief but significant visits to Pakistan within two days, engaging in discussions with CDF Munir and PM Shehbaz to deliberate on the critical regional situation.<\/p>\n

The premier also acknowledged and appreciated Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi for his valuable participation in these crucial meetings.<\/p>\n

#PakistanEconomy #OilCrisis #MiddleEastConflict #PMShehbazSharif #GlobalFuelPrices #Diplomacy #EconomicChallenges #InternationalRelations #PakistanDiplomacy #EnergySecurity<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on Wednesday that Pakistan’s weekly oil import bill has surged to an alarming $800 million, a direct consequence of the escalating oil crisis stemming from the ongoing Middle East conflict. Global fuel prices have experienced a dramatic increase over the past two months, largely attributable to the paralysis of shipping […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13463,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13462","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13462","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13462"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13462\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13463"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fajr.news\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}