Islamabad, Pakistan \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0Pakistan has ordered sweeping emergency austerity and fuel conservation measures after a disruption in oil and gas supply caused by the United States-Israel war on Iran and an escalating Middle East conflict.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the measures in a televised address to the nation on Monday night, warning that disruptions to maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz \u2013 a vital waterway for traded oil \u2013 had placed Pakistan\u2019s economy under direct threat.<\/p>\n list of 4 items<\/span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n \u201cThe entire region is currently in a state of war,\u201d Sharif said as he laid out a series of steps, including moving to a four-day workweek for government employees and spring holidays for schools from March 16 to the end of the month.<\/p>\n Sharif said 50 percent of government staff will work from home on a rotating basis and recommended similar arrangements for the private sector, giving key sectors such as banking an exemption.<\/p>\n While schools will remain closed for two weeks from Monday, scheduled examinations will be held. Universities and higher education institutions have been directed to shift to online classes to conserve fuel.<\/p>\n The austerity measures also include the federal and provincial cabinet members forgoing their salaries and allowances for the next two months, while salaries of the members of federal and provincial legislatures will see a 25 percent cut during the period.<\/p>\n Ministers, parliamentarians and officials can make a foreign trip only for essential purposes and in economy class.<\/p>\n All in-person meetings across federal and provincial governments have been banned and must be conducted online, and fuel allowances of government offices have also been reduced.<\/p>\n People have been asked to restrict social gatherings, with weddings and parties capped at 200 guests and limited to one main dish.<\/p>\n Pakistan relies on imports for more than 80 percent of its oil needs. Between July 2025 and February 2026, its oil imports totalled $10.71bn, while the calendar year total in 2024 was more than $15bn.<\/p>\n But the recent energy crisis has triggered the largest fuel price increase in the country\u2019s history, with petrol on Tuesday costing $1.15 a litre and diesel at $1.20 a litre \u2013 a 20 percent jump since last week.<\/p>\n Energy analyst Amer Zafar Durrani, a former World Bank official and chief executive of advisory firm Reenergia, said the government\u2019s austerity measures could work in the short term, but they leave the main driver of fuel demand largely unaddressed.<\/p>\n \u201cTransport dominates petroleum consumption,\u201d Durrani told Al Jazeera. \u201cRoughly 80 percent of petroleum products are used in transport, meaning the country\u2019s oil dependence is fundamentally a mobility problem.\u201d<\/p>\n He said measures like salary cuts or procurement freezes mainly affect public finances and do little to reduce national fuel use. He suggested that improving freight logistics by shifting more cargo from roads to rail could have a better effect.<\/p>\n On rising oil prices, Durrani said Pakistan could be particularly affected given the value of its currency in the global market.<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest risk does not come from oil prices alone. The real macroeconomic trigger is currency depreciation, which amplifies the impact of higher oil prices on domestic inflation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Durrani said a long-term solution lies in harnessing more electric power for transport needs, reducing the reliance of industries on diesel, and expanding renewable energy.<\/p>\n \u201cWithout these structural changes, every global energy shock will continue to threaten Pakistan\u2019s economy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Pakistan\u2019s vulnerability also extends to natural gas. It has been importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) since 2015 after domestic reserves declined. LNG now accounts for nearly a quarter of Pakistan\u2019s electricity supply, with the power sector being the largest consumer.<\/p>\n Qatar is Pakistan\u2019s primary LNG supplier, and its cargoes pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran\u2019s retaliatory attacks have targeted energy infrastructure across the Middle East, including the oil traffic passing through the Strait.<\/p>\n The fuel crisis in Pakistan emerged during the final days of Ramadan, when families are preparing for the Eid al-Fitr holiday, the most important Muslim festival.<\/p>\n Higher petrol prices have already pushed up transport fares and the cost of groceries, adding pressure on household budgets at a time when spending typically rises.<\/p>\n Muhammad Zubair, a plumber in the capital, Islamabad, whose family lives in Muzaffarabad, the main city in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, says the fuel crisis has directly affected his income.<\/p>\n \u201cI remain mobile for work on my motorbike, but with fuel getting so expensive, it just eats into my savings,\u201d he told Al Jazeera, adding that his plans to go home a week before Eid are now thwarted as he might have to stay back in the city and save money.<\/p>\n Sohail Ahmed, a 27-year-old delivery rider supporting a family of seven, says the government\u2019s austerity measures matter less to him than the rising cost of fuel.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no benefit to me if they [government employees] work three days or five days a week,\u201d he told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me, the main concern is the fuel price because that increases the cost of every little thing. With this situation not ending any time soon, I don\u2019t have much to think about Eid.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Islamabad, Pakistan \u2013\u00a0Pakistan has ordered sweeping emergency austerity and fuel conservation measures after a disruption in oil and gas supply caused by the United States-Israel war on Iran and an escalating Middle East conflict. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the measures in a televised address to the nation on Monday night, warning that disruptions to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14542,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14541","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14541"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14541\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14542"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14541"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14541"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14541"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Recommended Stories <\/h2>\n
![\"Interactive_Cost_OilPrices_Food-1773140062\"](\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Interactive_Cost_OilPrices_Food-1773140062.png?quality=80\")
<\/p>\nHeavy reliance on imported energy<\/h2>\n
Rising costs before Eid<\/h2>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"