Already faced with escalating prices, consumers will from next month have to fork out more for fuel – which will impact further on food prices.
The price of petrol is expected to go up by 70c a litre next month, which includes the 10c levy announced by finance minister Trevor Manuel in his budget speech last month. ccording to Mike Schussler, chief economist at T-Sec, the impact on the economy will be huge. “The increase in the petrol price is 11% and on diesel it is 5%. is a big increase in the input costs of farmers, as fuel makes up 27% of transport costs. So it will be harsh on consumers, but it will also be harsh on farmers,” he said. ccording to Magan Mistry, senior economist at Nedbank, the fuel price increase will have a direct impact on food prices, with prices going up by 0,5%. – Gwenda van Zyl
