Fuel prices to be lowered in Hungary
The wholesale gross list price of petrol will be trimmed by HUF 3 per litre and that of diesel by HUF 4 on 28 January.
at the same time, retail prices will not necessarily reflect the above changes, as they were not necessarily adjusted to the same extent as wholesale prices last week either.
The current average prices at the pumps are the following:
- 95-octane petrol: HUF 637 /litre
- Diesel: HUF 652 /litre
The government has repeatedly stressed it does not want local fuel prices to exceed the average of Hungary's neighbouring countries*, and the latest data (for 20 January) show that it was not the case. The excise tax hike did not affect Hungary's rankings too much and its average petrol price was "only" the fifth-highest and the price of diesel the third-highest among neighbours on Monday.
The Central Statistical Office (KSH), which relies on the European Commission's Weekly Oil Bulletin too, has adjusted its methodology after some well-deserved criticism it took to heart, but as of August it has switched to a monthly reporting frequency from the previous weekly frequency.
The next Weekly Oil Bulletin will be released on 30 January with prices for 27 January, while the KSH is not set to update its monthly readings until early February.
