Prices of fuel have been skyrocketing across the world following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a rise that has been largely felt by Moroccans.
The Global Petrol Prices website published a new ranking of global petrol prices per liter in the world, revealing significant disparities between countries, based on their taxation rates for the goods.
According to the ranking, the average price of gasoline worldwide is around MAD 13.5 per liter, for Morocco, the price is set at MAD 14.33, significantly above the international average, as domestic fuel prices noted an approximate 6% rise since the end of February this year.
In the European market, prices are the most exorbitant in comparison ‘to other countries, nearing an approximate MAD 16 per liter on average, with Hong Kong detaining the top spot of the most expensive gasoline in the world at MAD 29 per liter.
For oil-producing countries, fuel prices are extremely low, as Venezuela records a MAD 0.223 price tag per liter, Libya with MAD 0.31 and or Iran, where gasoline is currently selling for MAD 0.536 a liter.
Within North Africa, currently one of the cheapest regions in the world for gasoline as it is mainly made up of oil-producing countries, shows how Morocco’s lack of the resource places it as holding the highest price for fuel regionally.
Compared to aforementioned Libya, Algeria offers a liter at MAD 3.16, Egypt at MAD 5.28, and Tunisia at MAD 7.63 per liter. Morocco therefor provides gasoline for almost double that of its North African neighbors.
The price differences between countries can be explained by various taxes and subsidies for gasoline. All countries have access to the same oil prices on international markets, but they impose different taxes. As a result, gasoline prices are different, meaning that the lower the tax, the lower the price.
The Global Petrol Prices website explains the discrepancies in domestic prices by saying that, “generally, rich countries have higher prices while poorer countries and countries that produce and export oil have significantly lower prices.”
However, the website presents an exception, being the United States, “an economically advanced country with low gasoline prices.”
