Cape Town - Motorists are in for an early Christmas gift with a slightly cheaper price for a litre of petrol and diesel, the department of energy announced on Saturday.
On Wednesday, the price of both grades of petrol will drop by 20c a litre, while diesel will decrease by 32c a litre.
The wholesale price of illuminating paraffin will go down by 28c per litre, while the single maximum national retail price of illuminating paraffin (SMNRP) will drop by 38c.
The maximum retail price for LPGAS will go up by 17c per kilogramme.
The department said economic factors which impacted fuel prices included a decrease in the average international product prices of petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin.
The Automobile Association (AA) said on Tuesday, based on unaudited month-end fuel price data released by the Central Energy Fund, that the petrol price would likely drop by about 41c/l and diesel by 38c/l.
However, it cautioned that motorists shouldn't be too optimistic about further fuel price drops.
"Future movements of the rand and international petroleum prices have become very complex to anticipate, and since these factors are the chief drivers of the price we pay at the pumps, South Africans should be cautious about hoping for further fuel price drops," the AA said at the time.
It noted that host of highly fluid factors is at play, including local political developments, rating agencies' view of the economy, and the impact of possible changes in US policy after president-elect Donald Trump takes office.
"We expect this volatility to be reflected in fuel prices in the next few months," the AA said.
Last month both grades of petrol increased by 45c/l, and diesel went up by 63c/l.
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