News24 | Final fuel price hikes for March announced - with dark clouds looming for next month

The first fuel price increase since December takes effect on Wednesday.

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Fuel will increase by between 20c and 65c per litre on Wednesday as a rise in oil prices over the past month counters the strengthening of the rand.

All grades of petrol will increase by 20c per litre.

Diesel with 0.05% sulphur will go up by 62c per litre, and diesel with 0.005% sulphur by 65c per litre.

The retail price of paraffin will increase by 58c per litre, while gas will go up 26c per kilogram in the Western Cape and by 23c elsewhere.

The increases bring the price of 95 octane petrol to R20.30 per litre in Gauteng and to R19.47 per litre at the coast.

The wholesale price of diesel with 0.05% sulphur increases to R18.54 per litre in Gauteng and to R17.71 per litre at the coast.

Since the period determining March fuel prices ended on Thursday, the increases do not yet reflect the spike in oil prices following the Israel-US attacks on Iran, and the counterattacks by Iran on Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and other countries in the Middle East.

This means South Africans will probably need to brace themselves for April increases, apart from the Budget announcement of the collective increase of 21c per litre for the general fuel levy, the carbon fuel levy and the Road Accident Fund levy.

The rand strengthened from an average of R16.31 per dollar in the previous month to R16 in the month applicable to the March prices, acting as a counterweight to increasing oil prices by up to 19c per litre.

On Monday, Brent crude oil shot up to more than $80 per barrel, compared to the average in February of $69.08.