Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne announced that distributors will be able to sell gasoline “at a loss” for a few months in order to allow them to “lower prices further”, in an interview posted online on Saturday on the Parisien website.
With this unprecedented measure, we will have tangible results for the French, without subsidizing fuel, she assured, after recalling that selling at a loss had been prohibited by law since 1963. The head of government did not retain the opposition’s proposals which demand either a rebate like a year ago, or a reduction in gasoline taxation to cope with the surge in fuel prices which have reached the two euros per liter mark.
Everyone takes their part, she said, ensuring that it is normal to involve large industrialists, while recalling that the responsibility of the State is also to reduce its deficit and its debt. This announcement aroused the astonishment of Francis Pousse, president of the Mobilians professional union which represents 5,800 traditional service stations (excluding supermarkets) including 3,400 stations displaying the TotalEnergies brand.
Selling at a loss is out of the question
While TotalEnergies has already capped the price of fuel at 1.99 euros per liter in most of its stations, Mr. Pousse sees this new measure as a response to supermarkets, allowing them to fight in this ultra-competitive market, while the market price will soon exceed 1.99 euros. For us pump attendants, it is out of the question that we sell at a loss, he declared to AFP, before adding: My members live 40, 50% or even more from the sale of fuelso if they sell at a loss, I give them three months.
In an already very tight market, he points out that the net margin of traditional stations is 1 to 2 cents (per liter) in normal times. Mr. Pousse also thinks skeptical about the effect of this measure on purchasing power, because if the prices of supermarket suppliers continue to increase, they will not be able to afford to lose 15 cents on each liter of gasoline.
It expects rapid and firm commitments from the government to protect its members from this market regulation. No distributor or oil group contacted by AFP on Saturday evening wished to react immediately to the head of government’s announcement. Asked about the comments of the national secretary of the PCF, Fabien Roussel, who this week called on the French to invade gas stations and supermarkets, Ms. Borne said she was surprised by statements that were not her usual habits.
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I called him to tell him that it was a very bad message and that political leaders had to be very careful with their words in a context where there may be anger among some of our fellow citizens, she declared. . On the question of purchasing power, the head of government rejected the RN’s proposal to remove VAT on food productscalling on the far-right party to read studies which have proven that going from 5.5% to 0% is very often not reflected in prices.
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