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Swedish petrol prices jump sharply in wake of drone attacks

A litre of petrol costs more than half a krona more today than it did on Sunday.

Published: 17 September 2019 09:29 CEST
Updated: 17 September 2019 12:40 CEST

Swedish petrol prices jump sharply in wake of drone attacks

Refuelling your car will cost you much more today than yesterday or the day before. Photo: Leif R Jansson/TT

Sweden's leading petrol companies on Tuesday raised petrol prices by 0.40 kronor (approximately $0.041) a litre and diesel by 0.30 kronor a litre.

It comes just after a 0.15 kronor hike on Monday, which in turn followed a spike in prices on the global oil market after several Saudi Arabia oil refineries were attacked by drones on Saturday.

A litre of unleaded petrol on Tuesday cost 15.93 kronor at the pump at staffed fuel stations run by Circle K, according to the company's guideline prices for Sweden. A litre of diesel cost 16.68 kronor.

Other fuel station chains were expected to also raise their prices.

READ ALSO: Sweden scraps austerity tax – here's what that means for you

The price of a barrel of North Sea oil (Brent) went up by another three dollars from Monday noon to Tuesday morning – corresponding to a four percent increase to $68.6 per barrel.

It increased almost $12 a barrel on Monday, reaching a peak of $71.95, before falling overnight.

Iran-aligned rebel army the Houthis, who are fighting a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, claimed responsibility for the attack. But the US has sought to put the blame solely on Iran – which says it was not involved – and President Donald Trump on Monday said his government was “locked and loaded” and ready to respond.

Vocabulary

petrol – bensin

diesel – diesel

petrol station – bensinstation

unleaded – blyfri

oil – olja

We're aiming to help our readers improve their Swedish by translating vocabulary from some of our news stories. Did you find it useful? Do you have any suggestions? Let us know.

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How to avoid falling victim to tax scams in Sweden

Anyone who earned more than 22,208 kronor last year received their tax returns digitally last week, marking the start of tax season.

That also means an expected peak in tax-related scams, Skatteverket warns.

Most of the scams are so-called phishing scams, meaning attempts to steal the victims’ personal information. Fraudsters may for example email a person, pretending to represent Skatteverket, and ask them for, among other things, their banking details.

“We’re seeing these in all channels. They use fake emails, SMS, letters and in some cases even phone calls. It is particularly common in tax declaration times – just when we’re about to send out the tax returns, the e-service opens and it’s possible to declare – but above all when it’s time for tax rebates,” Jan Janowski, a Skatteverket expert, told Swedish news agency TT.

A scam email might for example state that you’re entitled to a tax rebate and that you should click a link to receive it. Don’t click any links, open any attachments or reply to the message. Skatteverket advises that you immediately delete the email or text message.

Another common scam is that you receive a text message claiming to be from Skatteverket, telling you that you owe them money and you need to log in to calculate the amount. The website you’re urged to log in via does not belong to Skatteverket. Don’t click the link.

The agency stresses that it never asks people for their banking details. The exception is that you may be asked for your bank account information if you log into Skatteverket’s website to declare your taxes, but that always first requires you to log into the site.

To receive your tax rebate, you need to inform Skatteverket of your bank account number. You do this not by clicking a link in an email or SMS, but by logging into their website using a digital ID, for example BankID, and submitting your details. Only do this on your own initiative. If someone calls you and asks you to log in with your BankID during the phone call, don’t do it. That’s another common scam.

Skatteverket will also never call you to ask for your bank account or credit card number.

It will be possible to declare your taxes from March 19th. You’ll receive any tax rebate you’re owed by mid-April or early June, depending on when you submit your tax return. These are the dates when fraudsters are likely to attempt the most scams.

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