Finance Minister Slavko Linic said should petrol prices continue to skyrocket, the government could react by cutting down excise taxes at the next price change which is expected to take place in two weeks.
"Most probably at the next price change, should the petrol price continue to skyrocket," Linic told the commercial television Nova TV, when asked what the government would do if the price of gas continues to go up.
Asked if the government will react once the price exceeds HRK 12 or immediately, Linic said the only way the government could intervene was by cutting excise taxes and at this moment it could do that only with the excise taxes on petrol and not with diesel fuels, because excise taxes on diesel fuels were below the allowed minimum stipulated by the EU.
Retail prices of oil products will go up between HRK 0.19 and 0.33 per litre, and the price of the best-selling petrol, Eurosuper 95, will be at a new record-high level of HRK 10.77 per litre, while the price of Eurodiesel will for the first time exceed HRK 10 and be at HRK 10.18 per litre, according to information from the Economy Ministry.
The ministry on Monday published the maximum allowed retail prices of oil products for the period from March 6 to 19, and according to the ministry information, as of Tuesday, prices of motor fuels will be 0.31-0.33 kuna higher, while prices of diesel fuels and heating oil will go up between HRK 0.19 and 0.24.
