Fuel price hike worsens Lebanon's tough living conditions
ABC News
Lebanon’s state news agency reports the government has raised the price of fuel by about 25%
BEIRUT -- Lebanon’s government raised the price of fuel Wednesday by about 25%, the National News Agency reported, effectively removing all subsidies on fuel products and pricing them at market rate amid a worsening economic crisis.
The new increase brings the price of 20 liters (5 gallons) of 98-octane gasoline to 312,700 Lebanese pounds — almost half the monthly minimum wage. The spike also affects cooking gas and diesel fuel used for heating, portending a chilly winter ahead.
“Effectively, the subsidies have been removed from fuel in a final manner,” said Georges Brax, a spokesman for the Syndicate of Petrol Station Owners in Lebanon. He said the new prices were calculated at the black-market rate.
“There are no more subsidies from the central bank or the state coffers,” he said, adding that world fuel prices have also been rising, impacting the pricing in Lebanon.
