Vietnam Raises Retail Petrol Prices, Cuts Oil Import Taxes

Vietnam raised retail petrol prices on Wednesday to match global oil prices but cut import tariffs on some oil products in an effort to trim prices and support businesses, its trade and finance trade ministries said.

Import duty on diesel was cut to 10 percent from the 12 percent set on May 4, while tax on kerosene fell 7 percentage points to 13 percent and fuel oil tariff is down to 10 percent from 13 percent previously.

The cut is designed to limit petrol price rises, help businesses and limit smuggling from neighbouring countries, including China, Laos and Cambodia, the two ministries said in a joint statement.

Top fuel distributor Petrolimex at the same time raised its retail petrol prices by more than 6 percent to as high as 20,830 dong ($0.96) per litre, while keeping oil products unchanged, Petrolimex said in a statement on its website on Wednesday.

The new retail prices, the third increase this year, in effect from Wednesday night, were in line with the latest global prices of oil products.

Vietnam's annual inflation rate in April quickened to 0.99 percent, the highest since December 2014.

(By Mai Nguyen)