Russian ministry sees excise hike at $30 oil pushing gasoline prices up 5%
SHANGHAI. Feb 26 (Interfax) - Russia's Finance Ministry expects gasoline prices to rise 5% due to an increase in excises given an oil price of $30 per barrel, Deputy Finance Minister Maxim Oreshkin told reporters.
"These are approximately our estimates for growth of prices for gasoline [5%] in the scenario of $30 per barrel. This is growth of prices for gasoline for 2016 [January 1 to January 1]. In other words, in such a scenario with a price of $30 per barrel, price growth for gasoline will be less than overall inflation in the country," Oreshkin said.
Earlier this week, the State Duma budget and taxes committee recommended that the lower house of parliament pass, in the first reading and overall, a government bill to raise excises on gasoline of various types, diesel fuel and medium distillates.
The amendments to the Tax Code would raise excises for class-5 gasoline from 7,530 rubles per tonne to 10,130 rubles per tonne as of April 1, 2016, and to 7,430 rubles per tonne from the currently planned 5,830 rubles in 2017.
Excises on gasoline that does not meet class-5 standards and on straight-run gasoline would be raised from 10,500 rubles per tonne to 13,100 rubles as of April 1, and to 12,300 rubles per tonne from the currently planned 9,700 rubles in 2017.
Excises on diesel fuel and medium distillates would be raised from 4,150 rubles to 5,293 rubles as of April 1, and to 5,093 rubles from the currently planned 3,950 rubles in 2017.
The government estimates the excise hike would generate 89.3 billion rubles in extra revenue in 2016.
The bill raises the excise on a liter of automobile gasoline by 2 rubles as of April 1. The excise rate for straight-run gasoline will also go up in order to preclude incentives for illegal gasoline production. The excise rate for medium distillates will be made level with the excise on diesel fuel to prevent schemes for evading payment of excises by selling diesel under the guise of medium distillates.