The end of the 15-cent-per-liter subsidy on diesel fuel had a very limited impact on pump prices, according to the first available data, with the result that the cost of diesel remains clearly lower than the level where it stood when the extension of the truce between the United States and Iran was agreed, 2.5 weeks ago, government sources argue.
According to the fuel price observatory of the Ministry of Development, on July 1, the first day after the expiration of the three-month subsidy, the average nationwide price of diesel fuel stood at 1.648 euros per liter, that is, only 4 cents more expensive compared with June 30.
This means that 74% of the increase that could have resulted from the end of the 15-cent subsidy was absorbed before reaching consumers, the same sources add.
Thanks to the small effect that the end of the subsidy had at the pump, the generally downward trend in the price of diesel in recent times was not overturned.
Specifically, on June 14, the day the agreement between Washington and Tehran was announced, the average retail price of diesel fuel in Greece was 1.739 euros per liter. On June 30, the last day the subsidy was in effect, the cost had fallen by 14 cents, to 1.608 euros, and was only 4 cents away from the 1.568 euros recorded on February 28, when hostilities began in the Gulf.
Government officials, who participated in the planning to address the consequences of the war in the fuel market, expressed their satisfaction with the fact that the end of the subsidy was reflected to a very small extent in retail prices.
The same sources stressed that the price at the pump should continue to decline in the coming weeks, following the gradual normalization of supply in the international oil market.
It is recalled that from the very first stages of the war the government placed particular emphasis on containing the price of diesel fuel, as it is a fuel used extensively in the supply chain and therefore can affect the pricing of thousands of goods and services.
According to the weekly bulletins of the European Commission on petroleum products, Greece managed to contain the rise in diesel prices better than the EU average.