PHNOM PENH, March 20 (Xinhua) -- The Cambodian government has reduced import duties and value-added tax (VAT) for gasoline and diesel to zero in an attempt to stabilize retail oil prices in the kingdom amid the escalation of the Middle East conflict, the Ministry of Commerce announced on Friday.
The government also reduced special excise tax for gasoline to 15.71 U.S. cents per liter, and for diesel to zero, the announcement added.
The announcement said the Cambodian government has decided to reduce the retail fuel prices as the international fuel prices continue to rise.
According to the announcement, a liter of regular gasoline costs 5,400 riels (about 1.35 U.S. dollars) on Friday, down 1.8 percent from the last three days, while diesel costs 6,700 riels per liter, up 2.29 percent.
Since the outbreak of the Middle East conflict, the regular gasoline price in Cambodia rose by 40 percent, as the diesel price increased by 74 percent, according to the ministry.
The ministry said last Saturday that more than 400 out of the kingdom's 6,300 fuel depots and gas stations had halted their business operations due to the delays of new fuel stock.
The Southeast Asian country entirely relies on imported diesel and petroleum. ■
