The Cuban Minister of Finance, Vladimir Regueiro, confirmed at the end of February that fuel prices will increase by 500% and electricity prices will increase by 25% in the country. These increases will take effect from March 1st.
In fact, Havana had announced the increase in electricity and fuel prices starting from February 1st in order to reduce the budget deficit. However, this milestone was postponed by one month due to a cyber attack, specifically an “external virus” targeting the fuel marketing system. A few days after this incident, the Cuban Minister of Economics, Alejandro Gil, was dismissed.
Cuban citizens rush to buy and even hoard fuel before the price hike of 6 times on March 1st. Photo: Reuters
Specific fuel prices in Cuba from March 1st are 132 pesos per liter, equivalent to 135,400 dong per liter, and premium fuel is 156 pesos per 160,000 dong per liter. Previously, the price of fuel in Cuba was only 25 pesos per 25,650 dong per liter.
According to GlobalPetrolPrices – a website that collects information on fuel prices worldwide, this new increase makes Cuba the country with the highest fuel prices. According to the latest updated data as of February 16th, this position was previously held by Hong Kong (3,117 USD – 76,850 dong per liter).
The 5 countries with the highest fuel prices before Cuba took the number 1 position:
| No. | Country | Fuel Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hong Kong |
76,850 dong per liter |
| 2 | Monaco | 56,950 dong per liter |
| 3 | Iceland | 56,450 dong per liter |
| 4 | Denmark | 53,230 dong per liter |
| 5 | Netherlands | 53,180 dong per liter |
The 5 countries with the lowest fuel prices:
| No. | Country | Fuel Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iran | 715 dong per liter |
| 2 | Libya | 764 dong per liter |
| 3 | Venezuela | 863 dong per liter |
| 4 | Kuwait | 8,400 dong per liter |
| 5 | Algeria | 8,430 dong per liter |
Cuba is currently experiencing the worst economic crisis the country has had since the end of the previous century. The consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with tightened sanctions from the United States, have caused the country’s economy to deteriorate.
The Cuban economy contracted by 2% in 2023 while inflation rose to 30%, forcing the government to subsidize nearly all services and goods for the people.
