• Both diesel and petrol prices are up by 11% within a week

  • Petrol now costs US$1.67 with diesel at US$1.68

  • Ukrainian war, Western sanctions on Russia have disrupted global supply chains pushing up demand

Harare - Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) has reviewed fuel prices upwards barely a week after another fuel price hike as global oil prices continue to soar in the wake of Russia-Ukraine war.

Latest statement released by ZERA shows that both petrol and diesel prices registered an 11% price hike in US dollar terms to US$1.67 and US$1.68 per litre respectively.

The oil prices have soared to record highs inspired by the Russia-Ukraine war which has affected global supply chains.

More panic on the oil market was added on Tuesday when the United States of America, the biggest oil producer suggested an embargo on Russian oil pushing up demand. Russia ranks second in global oil production.

This time last year, Zimbabweans were paying US$1.32 per litre for diesel and US$1.30per litre for petrol.

“Prices have been set in accordance with the increasing oil prices on the international market, which the Authority is continuously assessing,” said ZERA justifying the latest fuel prices hike.

In the former fuel price hike statement, ZERA stressed that the fuel price hike had been prompted by international crude oil prices which continued to go high.

Russia has been hit by a bag of sanctions by the western countries which ultimately caused a surge in oil prices.

Inspired by these sanctions and the war, crude oil prices shoot to over US$130 a barrel from around US$ 88 per barrel in January this year surpassing the 2008 global financial crisis record while Brent price for the first time in eight years (since 2014) crossed the $100pb threshold rising as high as $127pb.

The surge in fuel prices have the capacity to upset government’s inflation target which already shot up by 9% in January to 66.7%. in February, the highest since August 2020.

Oil price increases contribute to inflation surge and reduce economic growth. Agriculture, manufacturing and mining, the key economic pillars in Zimbabwe will suffer heavily, ultimately weighing on 5.5% projected economic growth for 2022.