As Brent crude oil prices hover around five-year lows, the government on Tuesday raised the excise duty on petrol by R2.25 per litre and on diesel by R1, which will help mop up an additional R4,000 crore in the four months through March, reports fe Bureau in New Delhi. However, the second hike in the duties in three weeks won’t result in an increase in retail pump rates as oil marketing companies have decided to absorb the rise in the duties for the time being.
Wary of widening budget deficit, the government had on November 12 raised the excise duty on such items by R1.50 per litre, which was estimated to rake in around R6,000 crore without stoking inflationary pressures due to low commodity prices globally. Wholesale price inflation hit a five-year low of 1.77% in October and retail inflation slowed to a record low of 5.52% during the month, as food and fuel items witnessed less price rise, offering the much-needed leeway to the government to raise the excise duties on the fuel items.