South Africa has introduced new fuel price relief measures aimed at easing the financial burden on motorists and commuters amid soaring pump prices and global energy market uncertainties. The announcement came on Wednesday during Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s mid-year budget speech in Cape Town.

The government will reduce the general fuel levy by three rand (approximately $0.18) per liter of diesel and 1.50 rand per liter of petrol. This adjustment is scheduled to take effect on November 4 and will last until December 1, with a smaller reduction expected to continue into the new year. The relief measure is estimated to cost the government around 10 billion rand ($611 million) in foregone revenue. However, this cost will be partly offset by the return of funds previously transferred to the state-owned Central Energy Fund, which supports South Africa’s energy security.

The decision comes against a backdrop of record-high fuel prices in October, when petrol prices exceeded 30 rand per liter and diesel prices rose even higher. Prices for paraffin, a critical fuel for cooking and heating among low-income households, also climbed sharply. South Africa, which imports the majority of its fuel, has been significantly affected by price volatility and supply disruptions linked to ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, particularly the U.S.-Israel war with Iran and the blockade of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

This latest fuel-levy cut follows a similar relief measure implemented in March. The government has been seeking to mitigate the cost-of-living pressures ahead of local government elections scheduled for November. Godongwana emphasized South Africa’s relatively strong fiscal position compared to peer economies, attributing this resilience to five years of “hard decisions” that have bolstered fiscal buffers.

Revenue forecasts for the 2026/27 fiscal year have improved due to stronger corporate, dividend, and value-added tax collections. Much of this uptick is tied to elevated commodity prices, though officials expect these gains to diminish over the medium term. Economic growth projections have been revised downward, with the economy now expected to expand by 1.2 percent in 2026, compared with an earlier forecast of 1.6 percent. Growth is anticipated to pick up to 1.6 percent in 2027 and reach 2 percent by 2029. Public debt is projected to stabilize at 78.4 percent of gross domestic product in the 2025/26 fiscal year, marking the first such stabilization in nearly 20 years.