From January 1, a HUF 41.3 increase can be expected in the price of petrol at petrol stations – based on the latest excise tax changes on the National Tax and Customs Administration website.

If the price of Brent crude oil becomes cheaper than USD 50 per barrel, the excise tax on petrol will be HUF 157.55, while the tax on diesel will be HUF 152.9.

If the price is above USD 50 per barrel, the tax will be 152.55 for petrol and 149.9 for diesel.

Including VAT, a total increase of HUF 41.3 can be expected.

Earlier, there were reports that fuel prices in Hungary could rise to over HUF 700 (EUR 1.83) from January. Zsolt Hernádi, MOL’s CEO, noted a month ago that fuel prices would certainly rise due to the expected increase in excise duty.

It is an EU requirement, it will happen anyway, the time has come,” stressed Zsolt Hernádi, who had already drawn attention to the HUF 41 increase.

Currently, a liter of petrol costs HUF 120 and a liter of diesel HUF 110.35 in Hungary in excise duty, which at the current exchange rate of around HUF 381 means only EUR 0.314 for petrol and EUR 0.289 for diesel.

Sooner or later, this would have led to legal proceedings by the EU. In addition, if domestic fuel prices were very low, fuel tourism could be revived.

Hernádi also noted that the war between Israel and Hamas has pushed the price of Brent oil above USD 90, but fortunately there has been no supply shock.

The market is afraid of escalation, everyone is looking at Saudi Arabia and Iran, because if there is only a one percent drop in oil production, it will mean a 10 percent increase, he concluded.