Fuel tax: the Government postponed the increase again amid the increase in public transport

The measure was published this Monday in the Official Gazette and bears the signature of the President, Javier Miley; the chief of staff, Manuel Adorni; and the Minister of Economy, Luis Caputo. Provides that the accumulated adjustment in taxes, which are applied on the sale of fuels and which was to come into effect from this Monday, will be applied from July 1.

So, The aim is to contain the impact on gasoline and diesel prices so as not to cause a greater acceleration of inflation: for June, a lower figure is expected than that of May, which, in turn, would be lower than the 2.6% in April. In the latest CPI measurements from Indec, the ‘Transport’ category was one of the most important after the recent increases.

In addition, seeks to reduce the decline in sales. The rise in fuel prices deepened the decline in April: according to data collected by the portal Suppliers based on official statistics from the Ministry of Energy, in the fourth month of the year 1,333,298 cubic meters of fuel were sold throughout the country, 2,38% less year-on-year, compared to the 1,365,814 cubic meters shipped in the same month of 2025. Furthermore, compared to March, the decline was 1,98%.

The sale of super gasoline fell 1.63% year-on-yearwhile that of Grade 2 diesel contracted 9.96%. On the other hand, premium fuels maintained positive figures: higher-end gasoline advanced 0,76% year-on-year and Grade 3 diesel climbed 5,85%. YPF was the only oil company that increased its sales in April, with a year-on-year growth of 1,79%.

In this context, the decision to postpone the increase was made “with the purpose of continuing to stimulate the growth of the economy through a sustainable fiscal path,” the decree specified. “It is necessary, for the products in question, defer the remaining increases originated in the aforementioned updates”explained the text.

In May, The Executive had already partially deferred the update of these taxes on sales of gasoline and diesel, after in April due to the impact of the war it had postponed full application for a month.

The updating of these taxes It is done based on quarterly accumulated inflation and has a direct impact on prices of gasoline and diesel at the pumps, with a subsequent transfer to the final prices of the products and services.

So far in this management, increases were applied, but increases are still delayed by quarters of 2024, all of 2025 and the inflation of the first three months of 2026 is added, equivalent to 9,4%.

As the war spreads in the Middle East, with no peace agreement in sight, The international price of a barrel of oil remains close to US$100: at the closing of this note, Brent is trading at US$97a European reference that is used in Argentina to set prices at the pumps.