Petroleum product prices are continuing to shoot in the Tajik capital.
Thus, the price for one liter of the 92-octane gasoline, which is the most sought-after grade of automobile gas in the country, rose at some refueling stations in Dushanbe from 10.30 somonis on October 1 to 11.20 somonis on October 21 (8.7-prcent increase), with similar price rises in other regions of the country.
More expensive brands of gasoline (the 95-octane gasoline and the 98-octane gasoline) are not available at many refueling stations in Dushanbe.
Owners of these refueling stations associate this with the insolvency of the population.
The price for one liter of diesel fuel in Dushanbe rose from 9.50somonis on October 1 to 10.20 somonis (7.4-percent increase).
As far as the liquefied natural gas (NLG) is concerned, its price has not changed since the beginning of this year – the price for one liter of NJG in Dushanbe is 7.70 somonis (more than 60 percent of the country's motor vehicles use liquefied natural gas as fuel) .
Petroleum products suppliers say that the price hike has resulted from the growing petroleum quotes and the rising selling prices in Russia and Kazakhstan, which provide the bulk of Tajikistan’s fuel imports, and the scheduled shutdowns of oil refineries in these countries for repairs.
Meanwhile, experts say the petroleum product prices will continue to rise in Tajikistan due to high tax rates.
It is to be noted that prices for petroleum products in Tajikistan have risen since the beginning of this year, but the first sharp jump in petroleum product prices occurred in the first ten days of March, when the price of the 92-octane gasoline rose 25 percent, the price of diesel fuel rose almost 15 percent and the price for LNG rose 9.0 percent.
Over the first eight months of this year, gasoline prices have risen 58.9 percent, diesel fuel prices – 25 percent, ad LNG prices – 80 percent.
