Fuel prices rise sharply: petrol at MVR 16.01, diesel at MVR 17.54
State Trading Organisation raises pump prices from 5 March, citing supply disruptions in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.
Pump prices rose by more than eighteen per cent on Thursday, with petrol moving from MVR 13.50 to MVR 16.01 a litre and diesel from MVR 13.92 to MVR 17.54, effective from 5 March. The State Trading Organisation cited supply disruptions linked to the Iran war, which began with joint US and Israeli strikes on 28 February.
Maldives spends, on average, US$443.6 million a year on diesel imports, most of it for electricity generation. Analysts at the Maldives Monetary Authority warned in a private briefing that a prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz could push oil past US$120 a barrel and pass a further shock to pump prices.
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