Egypt raised its diesel prices by one Egyptian pound to 8.25 pounds (27 U.S. cents) per liter while keeping gasoline prices unchanged, Egypt's petroleum ministry said in a statement early on Thursday.
The decision by the country's Fuel Automatic Pricing Committee (FAPC) came into effect at 02:00 a.m. local time (0000 GMT) on Thursday.
The decision was made "amid the ongoing increases in the prices of crude oil and petroleum products globally," the statement said.
Prices of 80-octane, 92-octane, and 95-octane petrol remained at 8.75 pounds, 10.25 pounds, 11.5 pounds respectively, while price for mazut that is used for non-electricity and bakery purposes remained at 6,000 pounds per ton, the statement added.
According to Waleed Gaballah, an Egyptian economic expert, the FAPC decision was made to make a balance and mitigate pressures on the public budget that has very limited resources for subsidizing energy.
"Egypt's pricing committee tries to keep the prices of petroleum products flexible, but it is difficult in light of the fluctuating international energy prices and the immaturity of the domestic energy market to respond to external price increases, as well as the unstable exchange rate of U.S. dollar against local currency," Gaballah told Xinhua.
The new price hike will lead to an increase in the prices of transportation in Egypt, because most vehicles use diesel, he said.
Editor: Galia
