Just when motorists thought about spending the festive season on holiday as far away from home and the office as possible, the petrol price is threatening to rise.
The rise has been said to be as a result of the weakening Rand.
The Automobile Association (AA) commented on unaudited mid-month fuel price data released by the Central Energy Fund. They say that the benifit of lower oil prices is being offset by a weaker exchange rate.
The mid-month picture shows only small changes in fuel prices where they might otherwise have been considerably lower,” the AA said.
The basic price of unleaded 93 petrol was lower by nearly 21 cents a litre at mid-month but the exchange rate moved almost 23 cents a litre in the opposite direction. This could spell a potential rise of two cents a litre at the pumps and a slightly more expensive Christmas for motorists.
The AA said the same goes for diesel as it increases between one and three cents and illuminating paraffin could be five cents higher.
Unleaded 95 is the only gainer, with the current data showing a drop of three cents a litre versus a potential drop of 26 cents had the exchange rate remained steady,” the AA said.
“If rand weakness continues to outstrip oil price gains, motorists will be paying more for fuel in December,” it said.
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