Nigeria's new President Bola Tinubu on Monday said his decision to remove a popular petrol subsidy would impose an extra burden on citizens but this would free up money for education, regular power supply, transport infrastructure and healthcare. The subsidy had kept petrol prices cheap for decades in Africa's biggest economy but it became increasingly costly for the country - the government spent $10 billion last year - leading to…

Five people have been killed in central Angola after police opened fire on a group of taxi drivers and other demonstrators who were protesting high petrol prices after the government's decision to reduce fuel subsidies. "The city of Huambo is calm now. A stable public safety situation," local police spokesman Martinho Cavito told AFP on Tuesday after the deadly clashes on Monday. Police had said Monday that "it was not…

On Wednesday, the petrol price (both 93 and 95 unleaded) will be cut by 71c a litre, while diesel will be lowered by either 80c or 84c al litre depending on the sulphur content. Illuminating paraffin will be 43c a litre cheaper. South African fuel prices are largely determined by international oil costs and the rand exchange rate, as oil is priced in dollars. The rand took a large hit…

Despite recent rand weakness the fuel outlook for June remains positive, with significant reductions in all fuels likely during the month. Commenting on unaudited mid-month data from the Central Energy Fund (CEF), the Automobile Association (AA) says lower international product prices are the reason behind the predicted decreases. “The weaker Rand/US Dollar exchange rate, though, is taking away from the forecast decreases which would have been more significant had the…