Fuel Prices Drop Across the Board as ERB Announces August Review

The Energy Regulation Board has cut pump prices for all major petroleum products for August 2026, even as the Kwacha continued to weaken against the US Dollar, the regulator announced in a press statement issued on Friday.

Petrol will now retail at K25.29 per litre, down from K26.15, a reduction of 86 ngwee, or 3.29 percent. Diesel falls to K26.86 per litre from K28.11, down K1.25, or 4.45 percent. Kerosene drops to K27.02 per litre from K28.32, a cut of K1.30, or 4.59 percent, while Jet A-1 sees the steepest reduction, falling to K28.71 per litre from K30.27, down K1.56, or 5.15 percent.

The ERB said the changes were driven mainly by movements in international oil prices during the review period. The average price of petrol on the international market fell from US$105.82 to US$96.92 per barrel, while Kerosene and Jet A-1 dropped more sharply, from US$158.97 to US$123.59 per barrel. Diesel was the outlier, holding relatively stable and edging up slightly from US$125.65 to US$126.58 per barrel. The regulator said continuing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East kept markets volatile even as prices generally trended downward.

Working against the price cuts was a weaker Kwacha, which depreciated from K18.35 to K19.01 against the US Dollar over the same period. The ERB said both the international oil price movements and the exchange rate were weighed in arriving at the new domestic prices.

The revised prices took effect at midnight on 31 July 2026 and will remain in force until the Board's next scheduled review. The ERB said detailed wholesale and pump price build-ups for August are available on its website, www.erb.org.zm.

The statement was issued by order of the Board and signed by ERB Board Chairperson James Banda.