The import price of a liter of gasoil is now set at 786.93 CFA Francs, up from 489.72 CFA Francs previously, while super gasoline has increased by 33.6% to 564.56 CFA Francs per liter. The structural dependence of the national market on international traders, following the shutdown of the National Refining Company (Sonara) in May 2019, directly exposes the country's industrial fabric to maritime risk premiums in the Persian Gulf.

The Cameroonian production apparatus fears a systemic spread of operating costs, as gasoil is the primary energy vector for the logistics, agricultural, and manufacturing sectors. International gasoil prices have jumped by nearly 89%, restricting the financial maneuvering room of road transporters and food distributors. Although the average annual inflation rate remains contained at 2.6% (a level consistent with the 3% convergence criterion set by CEMAC), the monthly increase in consumer prices of 0.9% signals the beginning of an impact on urban markets.

The maintenance of administered prices at the pump generates an immediate budget imbalance for the Hydrocarbon Price Stabilization Fund (CSPH). The widening gap between global reference prices and subsidized tariffs increases the state's debt to private importers. The authorities are seeking to avoid a recurrence of the previously observed budget impasse, the federal envelope allocated to fuel support having peaked at over 1,000 billion CFA Francs before being compressed to 640 billion and then 263 billion CFA Francs thanks to past tariff adjustments. The current arbitration opposes the preservation of the major public finance balances to the safeguarding of households' purchasing power.


Asaba

Tags: hydrocarbures gasoil inflation economie cameroun energie importation prix carburants finances