S. Africa's freight industry to hike prices as fuel price increases

JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- South Africa's Road Freight Association said on Tuesday that the latest fuel price increases will force it to increase transportation charges.

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy recently announced that there will be a fuel price increase with effect from Wednesday as a result of some rising international fuel prices and the depreciation of the country's currency, Rand. As from Nov. 2, the price of both grades of petrol (93 and 95) will increase by 51 cents per liter.

"Diesel has doubled (increased by 100 percent) since December 2021. The road freight transporters use, in the main, diesel as the energy source for their vehicles. They need to increase their pricing to cover the ever-increasing cost of diesel, and there are transporters who will not be able to carry on," said Gavin Kelly, chief executive officer of the association.

The delayed payment of work done is also affecting the industry, Kelly said, adding that it is inevitable to increase the prices as the freight transporters' operating costs are escalating.

Unfortunately, it is the consumers who will pay for the cost of the increases in fuel, he said.

The South African Reserve Bank is likely to increase the repo rate by 50-75 basis points in November, Kelly said, noting that this, with transportation costs for goods and services, will impact consumers during the festive season.