The great fuel price rip off.

[Skids]

Surprised this hasn't been brought up recently.

World oil prices are the lowest they've been in 12 months. Sure the AUD is around 68c, it was 72c at the start of the year, but fuel prices have remained high... why?

In January (when oil was the price it is today)this year, the average price of ULP in Perth was $1.65/litre. Today, the average price is $1.86.
Diesel was $1.64, today, it's $2.29.

Oil is currently US$76.28 a barrel. A far cry from the $120 it was in February and again in May, yet the price we're paying at the bowser remains inflated.

There has been little in the news about this blatant thieving, which is is a major driver of inflation. Why the silence?

[Skids]

And there's this, from July, when oil was still over US$100 a barrel...

"If that trend is maintained over the next couple of weeks and months, then we should actually expect to see the price fall at the pump by a comparative margin."

"So the fact that we've seen these falling prices in Singapore means that consumers here can now benefit from these falls in oil as well," Mr Dhar said.

This time (JULY) last year, the national average was around $1.50. In July, 2020, the price was around $1.20 a litre.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-08/petrol-prices-may-fall-after-global-oil-price-slump/101217830#:~:text=However%2C%20over%20the%20past%20few,of%20refined%20diesel%20and%20petrol.

[eddiesmith]

I loved the fact when I was back at home recently the prices was generally 1.60-1.70 everywhere. Yet there were 8-10 petrol stations near each other all charging over $2 a litre, how can one small section be 40 cents dearer than the rest of the state?

[lazzadesilva]

This disparity has happened for years Eddiesmith. In my many years of commuting from Bendigo to Melbourne, at times the price has been around 20 - 25 cents cheaper at either place. Could never work out why it was the case and why the price alternated between the two cities 🤔 🙄

[What'sinaname]

I never understood how people don’t understand the petrol price cycle. Do you understand how a Mars Bar can be $1 one week at Coles, $2 the next week and then $1.50 the week after, and then back to $1?

Is Coles ripping you off when they charge $2 in week 3? Or is $2 the retail price and the $1 is the discounted retail price?

If Woolies sell the Mars Bar for $2 when Coles has it at $1, is Woolies ripping you off?

[Skids]

The price cycle is easy to work out.

Why diesel is, on average, 30% more than what it was a year ago, with comparative oil prices is the puzzle.

[eddiesmith]

Yet the price cycle seems to be mostly out the window and it’s completely random.

Those 8 or so stations i mentioned earlier are always higher than anywhere else.

In Bendigo the prices barely move, there has been a 5-10c rise slowly over the last 2 months since Albo upped the costs but there is no cycle of up and down.

[eddiesmith]

[pietillidie]

Not to give the usual grifters an excuse, but IIRC refining can cause a genuine time lag. Victoria used to have a couple of refineries from memory (Altona and Geelong way??). What's the Aussie situation these days? Is it mostly refined overseas? Don't quote me, but I vaguely recall an article about China's zero-covid histrionics impacting refining.

[Woods Of Ypres]

I think Geelong still exists, but Altona is used for fuel importation now.
Most Aussie fuel is imported from Asia around 90%

We are probably getting ripped to some degree, but I don't think fuel prices can be correlated to oil price alone. you need to factor in production cost, shipping cost, retail costs etc. all have increased due to inflation.

also don't forget the fuel excise discount (22c p/l) was scrapped in Sept.

[Skids]

Oil has dropped another 5% in the last 2 weeks.
Gasoline is US54c/litre (A80c) on the world market. The cheapest petrol in Perth today is $1.59/litre, diesel $1.86.

https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/gasoline

https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/crude-oil

[lazzadesilva]

[stui magpie]

https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/petrol-and-fuel/what-affects-fuel-prices

Apart from what's in the above, we get most of our fuel from Asia and it has to be transported here which adds to the cost.

[watt price tully]

Sunday bought diesel in Sth Ballarat: $1.18 / litre
Melbourne prices: over $1:30 / litre.

[Skids]

Perth today - most outlets have ULP around $1.60, diesel is $1.99.