Consider six-months fuel working stock procurement, Economist tells Govt

By MILENNIUM REPORTER

ECONOMIST Trevor Hambayi has urged Government to consider buying a minimum of six months working stock of petroleum products to hedge against oil price fluctuations on the international market.

Mr Hambayi told Millennium TV news in an interview that calls to put the price of fuel at a high fixed rate would escalate the existing high cost of doing business.

“Essentially, it is not just an issue of setting a price that is very high, if we put the price of fuel at K50 it makes business almost impossible for every one of us to be able to manage because of the jump that has just happened from K30 to K50, it is a 60 percent jump, which is a very high cost for operations.

“The solution is that Government must find the money to buy the stock that lasts us six months or one year,” Mr Hambayi said

He added that having six months to a year’s working stock of petroleum products would hedge against price changes on the international market, which would protect consumers from high fuel prices.

Mr Hambayi said monthly reviews of the fuel pump price depended on the fluctuations in international oil prices, which was making it difficult for businesses to plan.

He encouraged Government to secure funds buy stocks of petroleum product to last the country a year.

Mr Hambayi said this would enable the country to do away with monthly price reviews of the pump price of fuel.