Canada - Reduction of GST leads to break at pumps

The reduction of the federal Goods and Services Tax (GST) has had an immediate effect at the gas pump.

The reduction of the GST from six per cent to five per cent, which came into effect New Year's Day, was reflected in the lowering of the maximum prices of all types of gasoline and ultra low sulphur diesel as of Tuesday.

Newfoundland and Labrador subscribes to the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST), as do Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, which combines the federal GST portion with the Provincial Sales Tax (PST) of eight per cent. As a result of this announcement, the HST has been lowered from 14 per cent to 13. The net result in Newfoundland and Labrador is a decrease from 1.0 to 1.3 cents per litre, depending on the rounding effect in the particular pricing zones established by the Petroleum Pricing Office of the province's Public Utilities Board.

The price at the pump for self-service gasoline in the Deer Lake/Corner Brook/Bay of Islands/Gros Morne zone is $1.154 per litre, while it stands at $1.163 in the Stephenville/Port au Port/Codroy Valley/Channel - Port aux Basques/Burgeo zone. From Gros Morne National Park to Bellburns on the Northern Peninsula, gasoline costs $1.165 per litre, while it jumps to $1.185 at the pumps from Englee to St. Anthony.

The reduction also applied to zones in coastal and southern Labrador where prices are currently frozen.

Source : Western Star - Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, dated 02/01/2008