South Africa’s petrol price will drop by 13 cents per litre, while that of diesel will increase by 19 cents a litre starting midnight on Tuesday, the energy ministry has announced.
The fuel hike will also hit paraffin with an increase of 38 cents a litre come midnight, the ministry said.
According to the South African Automobile Association’s spokesperson, Layton Beard, the increase was due to the local currency rand’s appreciation against the US dollar.
This had led to a lower contribution to basic fuel prices, Beard said.
“International petroleum prices [and] the international prices have really spiked specifically in the last two weeks of November.
“Although the rand has fared very well against the dollar, the strength hasn’t really been enough to offset that spike in international prices. That’s why we are seeing a bit of a mixed bag of the fuel prices,” he said.
Beard added: “I think the silver lining is that, at the moment, the rand looks stable against the dollar.”
“If this trend continues, looking further ahead from December going into January, that will be good news for motorists,” he said.
NM/jn/APA