Motorists need to prepare themselves for a steep hike in petrol prices from April 1, when fuel levies kick in. The international fuel price increase has also affected the increase in petrol prices.
This is according to the Automobile Association (AA), citing unaudited month-end fuel price data released by the Central Energy Fund.
International fuel prices have remained stable since mid-February, but have climbed sharply since 12 March 2018, the AA said. An increase of 63 cents for petrol and 57 cents for diesel can be expected. Paraffin has also increased by four cents, despite not being affected by the fuel levy.
The General Fuel Levy and Road Accident Fund (RAF) levy will go up in April by a combined 52 cents a litre, meaning substantial price increases at the pumps.
These increases will push the total amount of taxes paid to the levies to R5.30 a litre from R4.78. This means that around 40% of every litre of petrol is being paid to indirect taxes via fuel purchases. These increases are substantial, and will push the cost of fuel up to R14 a litre for inland users.
The cost of shipment of goods will also increase as producers, suppliers and freight companies will have to recover costs by increasing prices. All of this must be seen against the backdrop of the increase in Value Added Tax, which has also increased from 14% to 15%, the AA said.
The AA concluded that Moody’s decision to hold its current rating and change its outlook to ‘stable’ will give South Africa the much-needed breathing space to address economic issues.
These are the expected fuel prices as of 1 April 2018:
95 Petrol now costs R13.76 a litre – will increase to R14.39
93 Petrol now costs R13.54 a litre – will increase to R14.17
Diesel (wholesale) now costs R12.10 a litre – will cost R12.67