Excise taxes on motor fuels and gas oils will be increased by 0.15 kuna per litre as of July 10, the Croatian government decided at its meeting on Thursday.
"We have been witnessing reductions of fuel prices every two weeks in recent time and that is not a one-off trend," Finance Minister Slavko Linic said, adding that with the planned increase of 0.15 kuna per litre excise taxes would return to the levels of March 2011.
It is estimated that fuel prices will further decline next Tuesday and near last year's levels when the previous government cut exercise taxes, Linic said.
Under a regulation adopted today, excise tax on petrol fuels will be 3,100 kuna for 1,000 litres (as against the present 2,950 kuna) while on gas oils it will be 2,200 kuna for 1,000 litres (currently 2,050 kuna).
The government also decided that the price of natural gas for preferential buyers involved in a production activity would be 2.75 kuna per cubic metre by the end of September.
Economy Minister Radimir Cacic recalled that the decision on the regulated gas price for the industry of 2.13 kuna per cubic metre ceased to be in force as of July 1.
In order to cushion the impact of gas price increases and at least partly protect the domestic industry, we suggest extending the regulated price of gas at 2.75 kuna per cubic metre, Cacic said.
