Petrol and diesel prices set to increase by up to 3c this week

Petrol and diesel prices are expected to go up by between 2-3 cent per litre this week.

The increase is down to wholesale costs in America going up after refineries closed down following Hurricane Harvey.

Conor Faughnan, director of consumer affairs at the AA, thinks it will only be a short term move, but if it goes on any longer the Government should move to reduce costs for motorists.

"A lot of that tax was added in as extra, emergency taxes during the financial crisis," he said.

"With the financial crisis behind us, it's high time the taxes were reduced again.

"So, yeah - every time you hear about hurricanes and oil prices in the dollar, remember that's only one third. Two-thirds are domestic taxes."

There is also concern that market volatility could lead to increases in gas prices.

Vayu Energy senior analyst Keith Donnelly says Hurricane Harvey has had an impact in that sector also.

"On a global level, oil markets are up, and a lot of historical gas contracts are oil-indexed, so Hurricane Harvey affecting oil production in the US has caused gas prices to increase."