VELIKY NOVGOROD, September 19. /TASS/. Deputy Head of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) Anatoly Golomolzin expects the rise in gasoline prices to be in line with inflation in 2018, whereas the effect of raised excise duties on fuel will not be significant, he said Tuesday.
"Acting alone, it (the factor of raised excise duties - TASS) cannot substantially influence the price. There have been larger increases in excise duties. Still, there are reasons to expect it to unfold within the common trend - in line with inflation," he said.
According to Golomolzin, the tax maneuver in the oil sector that is currently being discussed in the government may have a greater influence.
Russia’s Deputy Finance Minister Ilya Trunin said earlier that extra budget revenues raised from increased excise duties on fuel and diesel fuel will amount to 40 bln rubles ($688 mln) in 2018. This comes after the Finance Ministry proposed to gradually raise excise duties on fuel by 50 kopecks starting January 1 and July 1, 2018. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said the funds will be allocated on the expansion of the road network, primarily in Crimea and Kaliningrad and across the Russian Federation.
The decision to hike excise duties has been included in the draft budget for 2018-2020 passed by the government, the ministry said.