Petrol prices for February 2019: South Africa vs the rest of the world

February looks likely to usher in South Africa’s first rise in petrol prices in almost four months, after the AA forecast that a slight fuel hike was on the cards within the next week.

Angry motorists can blame the steadily-rising price of crude oil, which has surpassed the December average this month and accounted for a slight bump in the rates. Petrol will now be eight cents per litre more expensive, whereas diesel is getting cheaper by three cents. It brings a three-month period of positive movement to a temporary halt.

Petrol prices for South Africa, February 2019

South African road users are set to fork out R13.85 if they’re based on the coast, or R14.18 for those who live inland. This makes Mzansi the 67th-most expensive country in the world to buy your fuel from. Not a bad return, considering we almost fell out of the top 100 just before the new year. But who’s suffering, and who’s livin’ la vida affordable petrol prices? Let’s have a look…

Petrol prices: Top 10 most expensive countries

(Prices based on rand per litre)

1. Zimbabwe – R46.31
2. Hong Kong – R28.84
3. Monaco – R27.67
4. Wallis and Futuna – R26.54
5. Norway – R25.68
6. Barbados – R25.17
7. The Netherlands – R24.65
8. Iceland – R24.48
9. Zambia – R23.95
10. Greece – R23.80

Why is petrol so expensive in Zimbabwe?

Earlier in January, the Zimbabwean government announced that they were increasing petrol prices by more than double the usual rate. It lead to widespread protests and the killing of 12 civilians at the hands of the country’s armed forces. Facing a shortage of fuel and crippled by industrial strikes, Zimbabwe decided to drastically hike the prices.

Elsewhere, Europe still remains a very expensive place to fill up, with 12 countries from the continent occupying the top 20 spaces. Italy (12th), Denmark (13th) and France (15th) are the next in line, while Finland, Liechtenstein, Sweden and Portugal (17th – 20th) complete the line-up.

Petrol prices: Top 10 cheapest countries

1. Venezuala – R0.12
2. Sudan – R1.81
3. Iran – R3.99
4. Kuwait – R4.83
5. Algeria – R4.94
6. Nigeria – R5.61
7. Qatar – R5.96
8. Turkmenistan – R6.00
9. Egypt – R6.05
10. Azerbaijan – R6.56

Why is petrol so cheap in Venezuela?

Despite Venezuela collapsing at the hands of its own government, the petrol price has remained staunchly unchanged at its scarcely-believable level. The state has vast oil reserves, which have been seen as a national “birthright” for all Venezuelans over the past few decades.

Realistically, you can top up a tank for R5 – Which is 15 times less than what it would cost you to fill up in Sudan, the nearest rival to the South American country’s rates.

How much is a litre of petrol in…

• Australia – R18.45
• Brazil – R15.26
• Canada – R12.61
• China – R14.41
• India – R14.58
• Namibia – R12.13
• New Zealand – R20.25
• Lesotho – R10.82
• Russia – R9.49
• UK – R21.34
• USA – R9.57

All information was taken fromGlobal Petrol Prices. Fuel costs from Syria and Mongolia omitted, as details were not fully provided.