Fuel prices on the rise after months of lowering costs
RAC Fuel Watch has revealed a rise in fuel prices after consecutive months of declining costs for motorists.
The cost of filling your tank could begin to increase from this month onwards, as fuel prices rise following tensions in the Middle East.
The news comes via the RAC, with its Fuel Watch petrol price monitoring system highlighting a 2p per litre increase in the price of petrol. The RAC states that the average price for unleaded petrol has gone up to 134.17p a litre, and it goes on to claim this means a 55-litre family car will cost £73.79 - an increase of £1.07 compared to the start of July. While that may sound like a small hike in the cost of fuel, given that we are just eight days into July - and that further increases are likely on the way - things could be set to get worse.
It goes on to say that supermarket forecourts still seem to be the place to go for the best value petrol (with only a 1.3p per litre increase on average), and that drivers in Northern Ireland still get the best deal on fuel, thanks to an average price of just 128p per litre.
The price at the pump is driven by the cost of a barrel of crude oil, and this jumped from $64 in late May to a high of almost $79 in late June. That increase is in turn being driven up thanks to tensions in the Middle East, specifically between Iran (one of the biggest producers in the region) and Israel. The June increase in crude oil did decline slightly, though, with it ending up just a few dollars more than it was at the start of the month.
Speaking about the rising prices, RAC fuel spokesperson Simon Williams said:
“The arrival of summer has brought some wholly unwelcome increases to pump prices, with retailers wasting no time in putting them up following increased tensions in the Middle East. Unleaded and diesel are now both at their highest levels since late April, although we see no reason for further increases as wholesale prices have come back down again.
“July will be a telling month – will retailers halt further price rises, or even cut them if wholesale costs continue to slide? Or will drivers be stuck having to pay an elevated amount for the foreseeable future? This is particularly topical given it was only two days ago that the Competition and Markets Authority noted how weak competition within the fuel retailing market is.
“Thankfully, we’re a long way off the record pump prices of exactly three years ago – when the Russia/Ukraine conflict saw the average price of unleaded hit an unprecedented 191.53p a litre and diesel climb to 199.21p, with some retailers charging well in excess of £2 a litre.”
A long way off the highs of the Russia / Ukraine conflict these prices may be, although this could be a case of rising prices once again becoming an issue for drivers and riders.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
