The French government on Tuesday announced a temporary cut in petrol prices, aimed at easing the cost of living, but the timid nature of the cut left consumers demanding more, according to dpa. Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici said prices at the pump would be cut by up to 6 euro cents (0.075 dollars) within the next 24 hours. Half of the cut, which would last three months, would be financed by the state in the form of lower taxes and the other half by oil companies, he said. On a purchase of 25 litres, the decrease would represent a "substantial" saving of 1.50 euros, Moscovici told reporters. After three months, the cut would be reviewed, he said. The head of the French Union of Petroleum Industries, Jean-Louis Schilansky, said it would up to each producer to decide how much they could cut. Total's supply manager Philippe Boiseau said Total would cut its price by 3 cents at motorway filling stations and 2 cents elsewhere. On Monday, Leclerc and Systeme U supermarket chains announced they would sell at cost price until the end of August and then implement the cuts proposed by the government. President Francois Hollande had promised during campaigning to act on spiralling petrol prices. One petrol station in central Paris told dpa Tuesday it was selling petrol for 1.96 euros a litre. The government says the cut will cost the state 300 million euros. The opposition has criticized the move, saying the government can ill afford to lower taxes at a time when it is struggling to lower the budget deficit. Consumer groups, meanwhile, have complained the cut was too small to make a difference to the cost of living.
