By: News24

Petrol and diesel prices will be lowered on Wednesday, thanks in part to a stronger rand.

Unleaded petrol 93 and 95 will go down by 15c a litre. Wholesale diesel prices will be lowered by 17c (0.005% sulphur) and 28c (0.05% sulphur). The wholesale price of illuminating paraffin will be cut by 22c/litre. 

The latest cuts bring petrol (95) to R23.11 a litre in Gauteng, and R22.32 on the coast. These are the cheapest levels since January this year.

The Gauteng wholesale diesel price will be R20.38 a litre from Wednesday, and R19.59 on the coast, also the lowest since January.

Petrol prices are slightly higher than a year ago, when 95 petrol cost R22.83 in Gauteng. The diesel price was R20.21 in Gauteng a year ago.

South African fuel prices are largely determined by international oil and fuel costs and the rand exchange rate, as oil is priced in dollars.

The average Brent oil price increased from $82.24 a barrel to $83.55 over the past month. "The main contributing factors are the decline in US inventories, reduced production from Canada due to the wildfires, tensions in the Middle East as well as continued production cuts by OPEC [Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries]," the Department of Mineral Resources said in a statement.

But the rand firmed, from an average of R18.44/$ over the past month to R18.23. 

Fuel prices will be adjusted on Wednesday.