The price of fuel will be reduced by half a shekel starting tonight (Sunday), following a tax reduction order signed by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich - which will go into effect at midnight.
The order reduces the price of a liter of gasoline from 8.27 NIS to 7.77 NIS.
The order was signed after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Minister of Finance agreed to reduce the price by lowering the excise tax.
In announcing the move, Netanyahu and Smotrich referred to the rise in fuel prices worldwide and claimed that the tax reduction was intended to prevent a similar rise in Israel. "While the price of fuel is soaring all over the world, we are making sure that it does not soar in Israel," they said.
The two also addressed electricity prices in Israel and linked them to the policy of developing gas reserves and increasing competition in the electricity generation industry.
According to them, the price of electricity in Israel is "one of the lowest in the West as a result of our insistence on developing gas reserves and opening up competition in electricity production.".
They emphasized: "Israel's economy is breaking records. We will continue to steer it responsibly.".
