The ACCC’s latest quarterly petrol report noted that the average petrol price across Australia’s five largest cities increased significantly in the December 2017 quarter, hitting the highest level since 2015.
According to the ACCC, average petrol prices in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth increased by 12.6¢ a litre in the quarter to 135.1¢ a litre.
“Motorists can fight back against these high prices by using fuel-price websites and apps to shop around,” ACCC Chair Rod Sims said. “Consumers can save significantly by timing their purchases during the price cycle, which encourages retailers to be more competitive.
“Retail prices in the larger capital cities can vary by around 25¢ to 30¢ a litre near the time that price cycles are increasing. The ACCC website has information on price cycles in the five largest cities and provides tips on when to buy petrol.”
Higher international crude-oil and refined-petrol prices and a lower Australian-to-US-dollar exchange rate contributed around two-thirds of the increase in retail prices. The rest was due to high gross retail margins.
Gross retail margins also contributed to higher prices over the quarter as they are, on both a quarterly and annual basis, the highest recorded since the ACCC began monitoring them in 2002.
“Petrol retailers’ margins are the highest they’ve ever been, and motorists are paying for it,” Mr Sims said. “Last quarter alone, average gross retail margins in the five largest cities were 14.2¢ a litre, an increase of 3.9¢ a litre from the previous quarter.”
Average gross retail margins in calendar year 2017 were more than 4¢ a litre higher than the average yearly margin over the past 15 years, which was 8¢ a litre. Assuming similar margins for sales of all petrol types across Australia, this represents an additional cost to motorists of more than $750 million a year.
“The ACCC accepts that some of the increase in gross retails margins has been due to increased costs,” Mr Sims said. “The information we have, however, indicates that this contribution doesn’t explain the bulk of the increase.”
