Zimbabweans woke up to lower fuel prices on Tuesday after an overnight reduction in excise duty on petrol and diesel with prospects of more good news if government follows through on a proposal to lower tax brackets.
The Zimbabwean government ordered players in the petroleum industry to reduce fuel prices with immediate effect to $1.35 per litre for petrol, $1.23 per litre for diesel and $1.17 for paraffin.
The excise duty reduction announcement by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development is expected to have a positive effect on the economy.
The Herald reports that the Energy and Power Development Minister Simon Khaya Moyo while speaking to journalists in Harare said that he expected maximum cooperation from players in the petroleum industry.
“After necessary consultations and in terms of Section 225 of the Customs and Excise Act: Chapter 23.02, the Minister of Finance and Economic Development (Patrick Chinamasa) has reduced excise duty on fuel with effect from 23 January 2018,” he said.
CGTN’s Farai Mwakutuya has the details.
Motorists in Zimbabwe have been paying more for petrol and diesel than most southern African nations.
Import duty for Petrol was cut by 6.5 cents to 38.5 cents a litre, while diesel was cut by 7 cents to 33 cents, this according to Willard Manungo, the Secretary for the Ministry of Finance.
Manungo also stressed that the change will have the impact of reducing the import of fuel costs in the economy’s production.
The Zimbabwe Energy Council last year noted that Zimbabwe’s fuel was the most expensive in the region, despite the government’s mandatory blending policy that compelled fuel companies to mix unleaded petrol with ethanol as part of efforts to reduce the import bill, local online website, the Herald reports.
Despite a decline in world oil prices, taxes and levies keep fuel prices high in Zimbabwe.
The new government led by Emmerson Mnangagwa has promised to make Zimbabwe again an attractive investment destination by reducing taxes and levies.
