By: Natasha Archary

Motorists will face a steep hike in the price of diesel from midnight on Tuesday, 01 August as the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy confirmed the adjustment in fuel prices this week.
Minister Gwede Mantashe said the fuel increases were based on current local and international factors, which include South Africa importing both crude oil and finished products at prices that are set at international rates.
Factors such as importation costs such as shipping, contributed to the fuel price adjustment for August.
According to the department Brent Crude oil price increased from 75.10 US Dollars (USD) to 79.75 USD during the period under review.
Reasons for this included an increasing demand for crude oil from China and India, and a tightening supply due to continued production cuts by Saudi Arabia.
Analysts expect the supply constraints to push the price higher in the next few weeks.
New fuel price adjustments for August 2023:
| Price adjustment | July 2023 | August 2023 | |
| 93 Octane | 37c increase | R22.06/l | R22.43/l |
| 95 Octane | 37c increase | R22.46/l | R22.83/l |
| Diesel 0.05% | 72c increase | R19.49/l | R20.21/l |
| Diesel 0.005% | 71c increase | R19.81/l | R20.52/l |
| Illuminating Paraffin | 71c increase | R13.92/l | R14.63/l |
| LPGAS | R1.61 decrease | R31.11/kg | R29.50/kg |
While the Rand held firm against the US Dollar, appreciating from R18.68 to R18.26, this led to lower contributions to the Basic Fuel Prices of petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin by 27.64 c/l, 27.36 c/l and 27.10 c/l, respectively.
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