Petrol Prices Fall in 21 Russian Regions After Summer Shortages

Petrol prices fell across 21 regions of Russia in the week of 8-14 September, with the sharpest drop in Sevastopol, according to RIA Novosti calculations based on Rosstat data. The decline follows a summer of fuel supply disruptions that prompted the government to introduce a series of stabilising measures.

Where prices fell

Car petrol in Sevastopol became 6.77% cheaper over the week, while in Crimea the price of fuel dropped by more than 2%. Declines of more than 1% were recorded in the Novosibirsk and Tomsk regions. In 17 regions the decrease stayed within 1%: in Tyva, the Zabaykalsky and Altai territories, as well as the Kirov, Kaluga, Sverdlovsk, Vologda, Penza, Tyumen and Irkutsk regions, petrol fell by more than 0.5%. In Kalmykia, the Primorsky territory, St Petersburg and the Lipetsk, Kursk, Nizhny Novgorod and Sakhalin regions the pace of the decline was slower.

After a summer of shortages

The country faced fuel supply disruptions this summer. To improve the situation the government has already taken a number of steps, including a ban on fuel exports and tax incentives for imports and for expanding domestic production. In late July Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said the fuel market had begun to stabilise, with restrictions at filling stations being lifted and queues shrinking. In early August the authorities agreed that oil companies would supply fuel, through regional operators, to independent filling stations as well.

• Petrol cheaper in 21 regions over the week of 8-14 September
• Sharpest fall in Sevastopol at 6.77%; over 2% in Crimea
• Declines above 1% in the Novosibirsk and Tomsk regions
• Government measures include an export ban and import tax incentives

Why it matters

Fuel prices feed directly into transport and logistics costs and into consumer inflation. The easing in a fifth of regions suggests the summer's emergency measures are beginning to bite, though the picture remains uneven across the country, with the largest falls concentrated in a handful of regions. Rosstat, the federal statistics service, publishes weekly consumer price data that RIA Novosti uses to track regional fuel movements.