Cost of oil falls but petrol prices up 7% since January

PETROL prices at the pumps are continuing to increase despite a reduction in the cost of crude oil worldwide.

An AA survey has revealed the extent of the hike, with petrol rising a massive 6.8 cent this month from January.

The average cost per litre now stands at 101.4, while diesel rose by 2.6 cent to an average of 97 cent per litre.

Prices, though, vary widely from county to county, and AA’s director of policy Conor Faughnan urged consumers to shop around.

He said the AA had received many calls from concerned motorists who felt the reductions in world prices were not being passed on.

This is something the AA was continuing to “watch carefully”, he said.

Dermott Jewell, head of the Consumers’ Association of Ireland, said “something was not right” with the system.

But, he added, it was very difficult to find a way to regulate prices, and also pointed to the budget measure, which saw petrol go up eight cent per litre, as a factor in continued high fuel costs around the country.

“We have long been told not to immediately associate the price of oil with the price at the pumps,” he said.

“But while we have taken this on board, the increasing reduction in the price of oil with no effect at all shows there is clearly something wrong.”

He said he firmly believed petrol prices had to come down, but the difficulty was in finding where potential savings were being lost.

“It is difficult to know who to believe in the myriad of explanations you get,” he said.

“One reason we are given is the exchange rate fluctuation and another is that money is added at the refining and distribution stage — this is more likely.”

Mr Jewell added that despite the reasons given, it was still most frustrating for consumers, especially at such a bad time.

Mr Faughnan said while prices are still way below last year’s highs, he admitted they have been creeping upwards in the last few weeks

“Volatile fuel prices have been a feature of the last 12 to 18 months.” he said.

“Broadly speaking, the average Irish price tends to reflect trends in world prices but you need to allow a lead time of two to three weeks.

“The price we are paying now comes from world prices last month and is also affected by exchange rates between theeuro and the US dollar.”