The daily unleaded petrol price over-recovery on August 14 was 28,892 c/l, bringing the average over-recovery since July 27 to 27,081 c/l.
An over-recovery means that the basic petrol price based on the daily product price and exchange rate is less than the basic fuel price used in the calculation of the monthly retail petrol.
An over-recovery, therefore, implies that the retail petrol price can be lowered at the next monthly price adjustment, provided the government does not introduce a new levy or raise either the wholesale or retail margin.
The retail petrol price is adjusted monthly on the first Wednesday of the month in accordance with the previous averaging period’s over- or under-recovery.
The current averaging period runs from July 27 to August 30 and a price announcement is due on August 31 with the next price change to be implemented on September 5.
The main impetus for the decline in the basic petrol price is a drop in international product prices, as the rand exchange rate has been relatively weak of late. — I-Net Bridge