The Motor Industry Staff Association (Misa) has welcomed the government’s extension of the R3 per litre fuel levy cut on petrol until June 2 and the suspension of the diesel levy for May – a move it says will ease pressure on workers, businesses and the transport sector.

The Citizen reports that Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on Tuesday extended the temporary fuel levy relief.

This follows the R3 per litre relief announced in March, which provided limited short-term relief to households from rising fuel prices following the Middle East conflict.

Initially, the fuel levy relief was meant to last until May 5.

Concerns over paraffin users

While Misa has welcomed the extension of the fuel levy cut, the union warned that the poorest households, who rely on illuminating paraffin for cooking, heating and lighting, have been excluded from the relief, with prices set to rise by more than R5 per litre in May, leading to unbearable costs as winter approaches.

“This relief is welcome, but it cannot ignore the poorest of the poor,” says chief executive officer: Operations Martlé Keyter.

“Families who rely on paraffin are being left behind. Government must urgently extend relief to paraffin users, or risk deepening inequality and hardship.”

Call for transparency and job protection

Misa also welcomed progress in the review of the fuel pricing mechanism, but insists this process must be open, transparent and participatory.

“Workers, communities and civil society must have a voice in shaping how fuel prices are regulated in future.”

Misa called on the private sector to contribute to economic and social relief by committing to a moratorium on retrenchments.

“Rising fuel costs cannot be used as an excuse to shed jobs. Protecting workers and households must be the cornerstone of South Africa’s response to global instability.”

Fuel price outlook for May

Meanwhile, fuel prices are showing steep under-recoveries, with petrol users on the line for a R2 per litre hike.

The Central Energy Fund’s under-recoveries show an under-recovery of 93 octane petrol of R1.77 and 95 octane petrol at R2.09 per litre.

Diesel is showing a steeper under-recovery of R5.43 per litre for 0.05% (500 ppm) diesel and R5.43 per litre for 0.005% (50 ppm) diesel.

Under-recoveries on illuminating paraffin are now R4.60 per litre.

If these forecasts remain unchanged, motorists will see the following price increases in May:

• Octane 93 petrol: Increase of R1.77 per litre
• Octane 95 petrol: Increase of R2.09 per litre
• Diesel 0.05%: Increase of R5.42 per litre
• Diesel 0.005%: Increase of R5.43 per litre
• Illuminating paraffin: Increase of R4.60 per litre

Record prices and global comparison

The highest petrol price on record in South Africa occurred in July 2022, when unleaded 95 reached a peak of R26.74 per litre inland.

During that same period, the wholesale price of diesel (0.05% sulphur) also hit a then-record high of R25.53 per litre.

While petrol prices have fluctuated since, diesel reached a new all-time high of R26.11 per litre in April 2026.

These extreme spikes have largely been driven by international Brent crude oil costs and the weakness of the rand against the US dollar, including the US and Israel’s war in Iran.

Despite the plethora of taxes and levies on fuel, South Africans are paying around 8% less ($1.363 per litre) than the global average price for 95 octane petrol ($1.48 per litre).

However, according to the Global Petrol Prices website, South Africa is paying $1.702 per litre for diesel – roughly 8% more than the global average of $1.58.

Notably, the temporary R3-per-litre reduction in the general fuel levy also had a substantial effect.

Without this, the country’s fuel prices would be 4% pricier than the global average, while diesel would be 19% higher.

There is a massive gap between these two outliers (besides the ‘standard’ list of taxes in the price, Malawi also had to add a charge per litre to cover supplier debt), and most of Europe’s prices range between R30 per litre (Spain) and R45 per litre (the Netherlands).

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