Petrol prices for March 2019: South Africa vs the rest of the world

If you're thinking of filling up your tank this week, you'll be best off doing it sooner rather than later: It's been announced that a 74-cents-per-litre increase for petrol prices will take effect at 00:00 on Wednesday. You can add in a 93-cent increase per litre of diesel, too.

Petrol prices for South Africa, March 2019 A falling rand against the dollar and the steady recovery of crude oil prices has taken its toll on Mzansi's motorists. Don't hold your breath for a turnaround in April, either the government are set to add 30 cents per litre on to the current fuel tax levy, too.

As it stands, this latest hike makes South Africa the 71st-cheapest place to fuel up in the world. We're at least on the right side of the fence, although things could be a little easier on the consumer. But we'd rather stay here than get our petrol from any of these locations

Petrol prices: Top 10 most expensive countries (All prices are based on rand-per-litre)

Zimbabwe - R46.73

Hong Kong - R29.91

Monaco - R27.67

Wallis and Futuna - R26.50

Norway - R26.09

The Netherlands - R25.08

Iceland - R24.97

Barbados R24.89

Greece - R24.37

Denmark R24.35

Why is petrol so expensive in Zimbabwe? In January, the Zimbabwean government announced that they were increasing petrol prices by more than double the usual rate. It lead to widespread protests and the killing of 12 civilians at the hands of the country's armed forces. Facing a shortage of fuel and crippled by industrial strikes, Zimbabwe decided to drastically hike the prices.

Europe still remains the most expensive continent, which harbours 11 of the top 20 countries where gas is at its most expensive. Italy, France, Portugal, Sweden and Finland are all charging above R22.46 per litre.

Petrol prices: Top 10 cheapest countries

Venezuala - R0.12

Sudan - R1.81

Iran - R3.99

Kuwait - R4.83

Algeria - R4.94

Nigeria - R5.61

Qatar - R5.96

Turkmenistan - R6.00

Egypt - R6.05

Azerbaijan - R6.56

Why is petrol so cheap in Venezuela? The state has vast oil reserves, which have been seen as a national birthright for all Venezuelans over the past few decades. Despite the volatile political situation, you can top up a tank for R5. So for the conspiracy theorists wondering why the US wants a regime change there, how's that for some fuel to the fire?

How much is a litre of petrol in

Australia - R13.80

Brazil - R15.00

Canada - R13.04

China - R14.45

India - R14.54

Namibia - R12.13

New Zealand - R20.66

Lesotho - R10.82

Russia - R9.47

UK - R21.39

USA - R9.99

All information was taken fromGlobal Petrol Prices. Fuel costs from Syria and Mongolia omitted, as details were not fully provided.

Tags: fuel hikespetrol pricesSouth Africa

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