Context: On June 17, 2026, the presidents of the United States and Iran announced that they had signed a ceasefire memorandum. The document declares a 60-day ceasefire to allow the parties to negotiate a long-term peace agreement. The agreement allows shipping through the Strait of Hormuz to resume. Experts believe that the deal is more advantageous for Iran than for the United States. Donald Trump admitted that he conceded to it to avoid an economic disaster. Oil prices have already dropped in response to the news. Prices are expected to fall further as large volumes of oil shipments delayed by the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz enter the market at once.
In the June 18, 2026 episode of Novosti 24 chasa on CTV, Poland was criticized for its approach to addressing fuel price issues. The host stated that instead of lowering prices, the Polish authorities are introducing a new tax.
“The Polish government has introduced a new tax on profits instead of measures to lower fuel prices. Although the authorities are justifying the decision by citing the crisis in the Persian Gulf, experts view the move as a sign of Donald Tusk’s cabinet’s helplessness. They believe that such a measure will not solve the problems, but rather reduce business investment activity, which is a key factor in sustainable economic growth,” the host said.
There are indeed plans to introduce a new tax. But it doesn’t apply to the entire business or to drivers. Fuel producers and sellers will be required to pay it. Moreover, the tax will be implemented after fuel price cuts have already been put into effect, not instead of them. Poland introduced price caps on fuel at gas stations back in late March. Additionally, the value-added tax on gasoline and diesel was decreased from 23% to 8%, and the fuel excise tax was lowered to the minimum level allowed by the European Union.
These measures are temporary. The reduced VAT rate and fuel price caps are still in effect, but the reduced excise tax has already been repealed.
Due to these tax breaks, the Polish budget is losing approximately 1.5 billion zlotys per month. Therefore, the authorities decided to offset some of these losses by imposing a tax on the excess profits fuel companies earned from high prices. In other words, the new tax is not replacing fuel price cuts. Rather, it is being introduced after those measures have been implemented to offset budget losses resulting from them.
