ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has decided to keep the price of petrol unchanged for another fifteen days, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced on Sunday, as the cash-strapped South Asian country grapples with unprecedented inflation and a host of economic crises.

Pakistan increased the price of petrol by Rs10 per liter on April 15, taking it to Rs282 per liter. The country’s economic crisis drove inflation to a record high of 35 percent in March, following a depreciating rupee currency, a rollback in subsidies and higher tariffs, while food inflation rose to more than 47 percent.

Pakistan’s move to hike fuel and energy prices are due to the country’s struggle to revive a $6.5 billion loan program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) which would unlock over $1 billion in funds. Islamabad is desperately looking for external financing as it faces an acute balance of payments crisis.

“The prime minister has directed us to provide relief to the masses as much as we can,” Dar said in a video message. “Hence, after several rounds of discussions, we have decided to decrease price of high speed diesel by Rs5 per liter from May 1,” he said. “We are not increasing [price] of petrol despite the fact that we received an advise to increase it. It shall remain at Rs282 per liter.”

Dar said high speed diesel would be available for Rs288 per liter while he also announced that the prices of kerosene and light diesel oil have been slashed by Rs10 per liter each. Kerosene would now be available for Rs176.07 per liter while light diesel oil would cost Rs164.68.

Pakistan’s energy imports during the last fiscal year were $23.3 billion, 29 percent of the country’s total imports. During the current fiscal year, the country imported energy products worth $7.7 billion, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).