Nominal hike in petrol price

THE PETROL will go up by one cents a litre and diesel will cost four cents a litre less from tomorrow.

The Department of Energy announced yesterday that the wholesale price of illuminating paraffin will rise by four cents a litre, while the retail price of LP gas will increase by 17 cents per kilogram.

Cheaper international oil prices have have prevented further significant increases in fuel prices for August.

The slight hike will take the per litre price of 95 octane unleaded petrol to R16.03 inland and R15.54 on the coast

Last month’s increase of between 23c/l and 26c/l pushed the inland per litre price over R16 for the first time on record.

The Department of Energy said yesterday that the average international product prices for petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin decreased during the period under review.

The rand, meanwhile, depreciated against the dollar to R13.4713 from June 29 to July 26 2018 from R13.2871 in the previous review period. “This led to a higher contribution to the Basic Fuel Prices on petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin by 10.23c/l, 10.44c/l and 10.62 c/l respectively.”

In its fuel price forecast last week, the Automobile Association warned that motorists and other fuel users should still be cautious “as 2018 has so far been a year of volatility in the fuel price and the see-sawing rand and oil price suggest that caution should be the watchword”.