The Russian economy faces another devastating blow as petrol prices soar, with retail costs having risen by 18% over the past year. The Foreign Intelligence Service has forecasted that prices will surge by at least another 8% by the close of 2025. This comes amid shocking levels on inflation – 9.5% in 2024 and already 10.2% in just the first four months of this year.
There has also been a 4% increase in fuel excise duties, reduced government subsidies for oil firms, and a rise in tariffs on Transneft – a Russian oil transportation company. This surge in fuel expenses could trigger further hikes in consumer prices across the country, as petrol directly impacts the cost of transport, production, and retail trade.
Russia also significantly cut its seaborne petrol exports last month, slashing them by nearly half year-on-year.
In May, it exported 133,000 tonnes of petrol by sea, according to the Price Index Centre – 63% less than the previous month and 47% less than May 2024.
This issue has been exacerbated by ongoing repairs at major refineries, such as Komsomolsk, Ufa, and Volgograd. These alone have cost Moscow 72,000 tonnes of gasoline production.
Despite the overall decline, exports to Africa increased to 90,000 tonnes in May – 17% more than in April and 90% more than May 2024.
Russian oil also took a staggering £3 billion hit in the first three months of 2025 as the country’s most vital export is hammered.
From January to March this year, the industry reported a loss of $4 billion (£2.9 billion) compared to a $4 billion profit last year, according to the Centre for Strategic Communication and Information Security of Ukraine.
Amidst sanctions and dwindling revenues, another spike in petrol prices will only increase inflationary pressure on the Russian economy.
