HARARE – Zimbabwe raised the price of fuel for a second time inside five days on Saturday – the sixth increase in 2019.
For the first time as far as most Zimbabweans can remember, diesel is now more expensive than petrol.
The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority said a litre of petrol would now cost 9.01 Zimbabwe dollars, up from 7.55 dollars. Diesel now costs 9.06 a litre from 7.22 dollars announced on July 30.
Despite the latest price hikes, most pumps remained dry across the country.
The increases were expected after Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube last Thursday raised duty on fuel. Similar increases on vehicle tax and road tolls triggered a sharp increase in transport costs, with a bus trip between Bulawayo and Harare now ZW$105 – a quarter of a teacher’s salary.
With inflation soaring, economic analysts say increases in fuel prices are adding to price pressures, especially as rolling electricity cuts are forcing businesses to use expensive diesel generators to power their operations.
Diesel and petrol prices have gone up sharply in line with a slide in the value of the local RTGS currency, renamed the Zimbabwe dollar in June.
The biggest fuel price hike in January, a 150 percent increase, triggered violent protests by Zimbabweans. More than a dozen people were killed when the army clamped down on the unrest.
Ncube said fuel was considerably cheaper than in neighbouring countries. He would like to see the price increase to the equivalent of US$1 a litre.
The Zimbabwe dollar was trading on Monday at 9.22 against the greenback on the official interbank market. On the black market, US$1 fetched 10.8 Zimbabwe dollars.
