A major Australian motorist association has called on the country’s consumer watchdog to investigate prolonged petrol price cycles, due to their impacts on the cost of living.
The National Roads and Motorists’ Association (NRMA) has released a new analysis indicating that fuel prices across the country may have been artificially inflated in 2024.
These high petrol prices forced the average household to pay $426 more for fuel than the previous year.
According to NRMA data, Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne had some of the highest petrol prices in Australia despite being the three most populous cities.
The average price for regular unleaded petrol in Brisbane was 195 cents (121 U.S. cents) per litre, just behind the most expensive price in Canberra, which was 196.3 cents per litre.
Motorists in Sydney and Melbourne paid an average of 191.1 cents and 190.3 cents per litre, respectively, while drivers in other capital cities paid between 181 and 188 cents at the pump.
In other parts of Australia, petrol prices trended around 195 cents a litre.
The NRMA attributed the sustained high prices partly to extended price cycles, where prices drop steadily over a period before increasing significantly.
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the petrol price cycles were around 6 weeks for Sydney and Melbourne, and 7 weeks for Brisbane.
Adelaide has a two-week cycle, while Perth’s cycles change every week.
Longer Cycles Not Reasonable: NRMA
NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said it was unreasonable for petrol prices to stay higher for longer in places like Sydney and Melbourne, where high competition should theoretically drive prices down.“There is no justifiable reason for our biggest cities to be among the most expensive,” he said.
“Artificially inflated prices don’t just hurt families. They also have a negative impact on the Australian economy at a time when cost-of-living pressures and inflation sit at the top of concerns for Australia’s policymakers and families alike.”
The NRMA has urged the ACCC to immediately investigate the price cycles in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne as part of its broader inquiries into supermarket pricing and aviation fares.
While the ACCC monitors fuel price cycles, it does not set or control them.
The price of crude oil and fuel taxes contributed to 83 percent of the total cost for regular unleaded and diesel, while the remaining costs came from refining, transport, wholesale and retail costs and margins.
Australia has increasingly become dependent on imports for its fuel needs in the past decade, with automotive fuel imports soaring from 28.5 percent in 2010-2011 to 83.6 percent in 2023-2024.
Meanwhile, local fuel production dropped by 65.4 percent over the period.
