Egypt Hikes Fuel Prices by 50 Percent

Egypt has raised gasoline prices by up to 50%, its oil minister said on Saturday, under an IMF reform plan calling for austerity measures that have made life tougher for ordinary Egyptians. Oil Minister Tarek El Molla said the price rise would help Egypt save up to 50 billion Egyptian pounds ($2.8 billion) in allocations for state subsidies in the 2018-19 state budget, Reuters reported. The price hike, the third since Egypt floated the pound currency in November 2016, is expected to pile more pressure on Egyptian consumers struggling to make ends meet amid high unemployment and rising prices. The oil minister said the price for 95 octane gasoline had been increased to 7.75 Egyptian pounds a liter from 6.60 pounds; 92 octane had been raised to 6.75 pounds a liter from 5 pounds and 80 octane had gone up to 5.50 pounds a liter from 3.65 pounds. The price for a canister of gas for Egyptian households rose to 50 pounds from 30, while a bottle of gas for commercial purposes was raised to 100 pounds from 60.