While many are still celebrating the victory that was September’s official petrol and diesel prices, which saw all enjoying a price cut in September, life moves on. The Central Energy Fund (CEF) has continued to supply fuel price data in the form of daily predictive snapshots, and the latest offers some bad news for motorists in October.

Petrol takes a big hit

Specifically, those motorists who guzzle petrol are in for a nasty shock by the time October rolls around. Diesel drivers, on the other hand, who have had to endure many price hikes in the past few months, are actually facing yet another price cut. It’s not a major decrease, hovering near the R0.17c/l mark, but it’s something.

Of course, we should mention that the CEF’s predictive data is not final and is subject to change. Working in conjunction with the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE), the CEF keeps track of those economic factors that influence the price of fuel locally, offering interested Safas the most accurate price data on a day-by-day basis. The latest data (found below) was captured on 5 September 2025.

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Typically, the DMRE uses this data to help determine the official fuel price adjustments every month, which usually takes place on the first Wednesday of each new month. That’s 1 October 2025, if you were wondering. That leaves a lot of time between now and then for things to change for fuel prices to swing in our favour again.

The biggest factors contributing to local fuel prices are the Rand/US Dollar exchange throughout any given month, as well as the price of oil internationally. Higher oil prices and a weak Rand are a deadly combination for South Africa’s fuel prices, usually leading to price hikes across the board. So far, however, diesel drivers appear to be getting off easy. Let’s hope it stays that way.

Here are the petrol and diesel price predictions (so far) for October 2025: