R9.49 per litre petrol price pain, and a new Toyota bakkie on the cards for South Africa

Astron Energy has joined Shoprite and Checkers’ Xtra Savings rewards initiative, allowing motorists to receive between 25c and 50c per litre in rewards on qualifying fuel purchases.

These rewards are allocated to customers within 24 hours of their fuel purchase and can be redeemed at Shoprite Group stores.

“In the current economic environment, value needs to be real, relevant and easy to access,” said Thayuri Moodley, Head of Marketing at Astron Energy.

“By bringing together fuel and grocery rewards, we are connecting two important parts of customers’ everyday lives.”

Meanwhile, oil prices have risen this week as traders weighed mixed signals on the prospects for a conclusion to the Iran war. 

While US President Donald Trump has said further strikes on Iran wouldn’t be necessary, regional flareups have persisted and peace talks have shown little progress, according to Bloomberg.

Iran will not remove “a single atom” of enriched nuclear material from the country, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Mohsen Rezaee said in an interview with Al Mayadeen.

Brent Crude has risen to roughly $93 per barrel, up 50% from before the war began.

5 important things

R9.49 per litre petrol price pain: South Africans are paying nearly R10 per litre more for petrol than they were at the start of 2026. Prices fell by an imperceptible 1c per litre in November after the government reduced fuel taxes. [TopAuto].

Deadline for political parties to remove election posters on streetlights: Cape Town has instructed all political parties to remove their election posters and banners by 18 November [City of Cape Town].

Chery under fire in South Africa: Chery has been criticised for not making previous recalls public, following a recall this week affecting the Tiggo 4 Pro, Tiggo 8 Pro Max, and Omoda C5. The National Consumer Commission found that Chery had failed to report previous recalls, as is required by law. [BusinessDay].

EU lawmakers flag BYD as a possible cybersecurity risk: EU lawmakers have requested that the European Commission conduct a cybersecurity assessment for cars produced by BYD. The group expressed concern that the cars’ onboard cameras and sensors could capture restricted information [Car Mag].

Toyota Hilux Champ on the cards for South Africa: The CEO of Toyota South Africa Motors said that the brand will launch new vehicles based on the Hilux platform in 2027, hinting that the new Fortuner and Hilux Champ may be on the horizon [Cars.co.za].