On the morning of Wednesday 5 March, South Africa’s petrol prices increased dramatically, reaching the highest-ever price in South African history.
On the morning of Wednesday 5 March, South Africa’s petrol prices increased dramatically, reaching the highest-ever price in South African history.
Car owners can now expect to pay R14.32 for unleaded petrol inland and R13.95 at the coast.
This represents a R1.23 increase from last year’s R12.72 on the coast.
To make matters worse, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan announced that there will be another 20 cent increase in the national fuel levy from April 2014.
To put it in perspective, in March 2009, unleaded petrol cost Gauteng consumers R6.88 per litre.
Today, the petrol price is R14.32 – a staggering 100% increase over a five year period.
Now more than ever, consumers are posing the question: where is our money actually going when we fill up?
According to News24, only half of the petrol price is for the actual petrol itself.
The other half is given to tax in the form of the fuel levy and the Road Accident Fund (RAF).
The other culprit for the increase in petrol prices is the country’s plunging currency exchange rate and the rise in the price of Brent crude oil.
The price of Brent crude oil has risen each year by almost 20% since 2009.
Five years ago, Brent crude was almost $45 a barrel and now stands at $110 a barrel.
