You must admit that it sounds like some kind of nonsense. The government decided to ban the import of petroleum products to Russia in order to prevent the supply of cheap foreign gasoline to the domestic market. What is the same absurdity, no? After all, gasoline is included in the price of almost everything, and cheap gasoline would reduce prices, or at least not increase them.
Is not it?
Of course, experts will explain that there are objective circumstances as well. Due to the fall in oil prices, gasoline prices have also collapsed in the world. But in Russia there is a mechanism for smoothing prices (the so-called damper), which protects the cost of fuel both from a sharp rise and from a fall that could occur as a result of fluctuations in oil prices. Within the framework of this mechanism, oilmen pay extra to the state if the domestic market becomes a premium, and therefore cannot reduce the prices at gas stations. If there is a discount in the domestic market compared to export supplies, then the budget already pays extra to companies so that they do not raise prices.
As a result, Russian gasoline turned out to be much more expensive than netback (export price minus transportation and tax costs). In such conditions, without a ban, suppliers would start buying cheap gasoline "over the hill".
Here, of course, it is not a fact that they would sell it cheaply at our gas stations, and would not profit from the difference themselves. Well, plus, if you look at the situation in general, all this, in principle, is suitable for the protection of its market from cheaper foreign products and such barriers are often made for various raw materials and goods to protect their producers.
But here I, as not an expert, still see some kind of bias in this. Okay, there is aluminum, household goods or electronics. There are no questions, such manufacturers can be protected. However, by prohibiting gasoline to "get cheaper" because of the import ban, we essentially make everything else go up in price, and this hits the population decently. Can't you avoid this bias?
And by the way, is it only in our country such a scheme of relations between oilmen and the state with excise taxes, taxes and the final price, or are there other similar countries?
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