Netanyahu lowers fuel price hike by 10 agorot
Tax reduction comes as prices are set to hit record
Hours before gas prices were set to reach their highest level ever, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stepped in to temper the expected rise, lowering the amount prices will jump to by 10 agorot.
The move follows a public and political campaign against the planned hike, which was expected to reach NIS 8.05 for full service and 7.84 for self service.
Following the reduction, one liter of 95 octane gasoline will cost 7.74 NIS for self-service and 7.95 for full-service, which will still be a record high.
This is not the first time the prime minister has lowered the fuel tax in response to rising prices; in both January 2012 and March 2011 Netanyahu did the same.
“The state does not control the world oil price,” he was quoted as saying in Maariv, “but we do not have to charge an additional tax with every price increase.”
The last 14 months have seen a 20% increase in gasoline prices. Even with the tax reduction Israel’s fuel price at the pump remains among the highest in the world, according to tracking firm AirInc.