He advises farmers who will need fuel later on in December to not stock up now, but to wait until next month. “By doing that they could save roughly about 3% on the price of diesel,” said Sihlobo.
He added that farmers, who would greatly benefit from this drop will be towards the western side of the North West, who would still be planting towards December.
“Farmers in the citrus industry, as well as people in the transport industry, who have to transport crops to the silos, will also benefit to some extent,” he said.
Shilobo attributed the drop to the increase in the supply of Brent crude oil.
“The US and Nigeria are producing more oil, while Libya is also coming back into production. The global increase in Brent crude oil production has kept the prices roughly at levels of US$45/barrel, while the previous month it was roughly at about US$50 per barrel.”
He added that the Rand has also gained ground against major currencies.
“The strengthening of the rand relative to the previous month has played a positive role in the drop of the fuel price. This drop is a good thing for agriculture.”
