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Iran hikes price of petrol by a third
Tehran, Apr 05: Iran raised the price of petrol by between 30 and 35 per cent today, risking a rise in inflation, press reports said.
Tehran, Apr 05: Iran raised the price of petrol by between 30 and 35 per cent today, risking a rise in inflation, press reports said.
The price hikes are part of the country's annual budge and take effect immediately.
Standard petrol increased by 150 rials (1.9 us cents) per liter to 650 rials (8.12 us cent) and super went up by 235 rials (2.9 us cents) to 900 rials (11.25 us cent) per liter.
The Iranian government has predicted inflation of 15.5 per cent for the current financial year, which started on March 20, but analysts believe that a rise in petrol prices ran the risk of pushing that figure higher.
Tehran has decided to impose a series of taxes to increase the price of petrol in a bid to discourage the use of private vehicles, cutting fuel consumption and easing pollution, particularly in the capital.
Economic experts believe, however, that the rise was not enough to decrease consumption as poorer people usually travel by public transport and not in private cars, but it was expected to lead to a rise in the cost of all other commodities.
According to official figures, petrol consumption increased by ten per cent to 50 million liters per day last year compared to the previous year.
Iran was forced to import one billion dollars' worth of petrol last year to meet domestic demand and the government paid out more than $ 3 billion in petrol subsidies.
Standard petrol increased by 150 rials (1.9 us cents) per liter to 650 rials (8.12 us cent) and super went up by 235 rials (2.9 us cents) to 900 rials (11.25 us cent) per liter.
The Iranian government has predicted inflation of 15.5 per cent for the current financial year, which started on March 20, but analysts believe that a rise in petrol prices ran the risk of pushing that figure higher.
Tehran has decided to impose a series of taxes to increase the price of petrol in a bid to discourage the use of private vehicles, cutting fuel consumption and easing pollution, particularly in the capital.
Economic experts believe, however, that the rise was not enough to decrease consumption as poorer people usually travel by public transport and not in private cars, but it was expected to lead to a rise in the cost of all other commodities.
According to official figures, petrol consumption increased by ten per cent to 50 million liters per day last year compared to the previous year.
Iran was forced to import one billion dollars' worth of petrol last year to meet domestic demand and the government paid out more than $ 3 billion in petrol subsidies.
The "real" price of petrol is three times more than its present price at the pumps.
Bureau Report