By Dylan Bettencourt
- The US and Israel bombed Iran on 28 February. Oil prices jumped from under $60 a barrel to above $100.
- In 2022, Gauteng taxi associations raised fares by up to R5 per trip when petrol rose during the Russia-Ukraine war.
South Africans are facing a petrol price increase of close to R4 per litre in April.
The Central Energy Fund (CEF) snapshot for the second week of March shows petrol 95 on an under-recovery of R3.98 per litre. Petrol 93 is at R3.62 per litre.
Diesel is worse. The under-recovery sits between R6.63 and R6.75 per litre. People who use illuminating paraffin face the biggest hit, at R8.53 per litre under-recovery.
A war in the Middle East triggered the spike. On 28 February, the US and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran, bombing its capital and killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iran retaliated, hitting US military bases in neighbouring countries.
Oil prices shot from under $60 a barrel at the start of the year to above $110, before settling above $100. The rand fell from under R16 to the dollar towards R17. Gains in gold and platinum prices were not enough to offset the damage.
New government levies will add another 21 cents per litre from 1 April. The general fuel levy rises by nine cents for petrol, the carbon levy by five cents and the Road Accident Fund (RAF) levy by seven cents, taking it to R2.25 per litre.
Civil rights organisation AfriForum has written to Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, asking him to scrap the levy increases and introduce a temporary tax cut.
South Africans have seen this before. During the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war, Gauteng taxi associations raised fares by between R2 and R5 per trip. Food inflation hit 9% that year, the highest level since 2017.
In 2022, the government cut the general fuel levy by R1.50 per litre during the Russia-Ukraine energy shock before gradually reversing it.
Pictured above: A petrol station.
Image source: Pexels
