The good news is that South African motorists can likely still look forward to more fuel price relief at the beginning of September, but that price decrease is set to be somewhat smaller than had been predicted earlier in the month.
On August 12 the average over-recovery was running at 69 cents a litre for petrol and between 93 and 94 c/l for diesel, according to the Central Energy Fund. However the latest data at the time of writing, counting oil price and currency movements up to Tuesday (August 23), showed an over-recovery of just 41 cents a litre for petrol and 66 c/l for low-sulphur diesel.
This would theoretically see the price of 95 Unleaded reduced to R11.94 in Gauteng and R11.46 at the coast, while low-sulphur diesel would now cost R10.30 inland and R9.92 at the coast. However, the latest data doesn't fully reflect the rand's plunge to R13.92 on Tuesday night after news that Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan had been ordered to report to the Hawks by the end of the week on allegations relating to a rogue SARS unit. Read more about that here .
Unless there is a reassuring outcome and swift recovery of the currency, September’s fuel price relief is sure to be eroded further and price increases could even be on the horizon in the months that follow.
The other factor not working in our favour is the international oil price, which has shown a general upwards trend during August. Brent Crude was trading at just below $43 a barrel at the beginning of the month, but peaked at over $50 on August 18, before retreating slightly. On Wednesday morning oil was trading at R49.41.
Subscribe to our