UK hit by biggest petrol price rise in almost two decades
UK petrol and diesel prices went up every day since April 22, adding 8p a litre to prices paid by motorists at the petrol pump, making it the longest sustained price increase since March 2015.
Motorist suffered the worst rise in the price of petrol in at least 18 years with 6p a litre being added, data from RAC Fuel Watch revealed on Tuesday.
Unleaded petrol shot up from 123.43p to 129.41p, taking the cost of filling up a 55-litre family car to £71.18 – an increase of £3.29 in just one month.
The average price of a litre of diesel increased 6.12p – from 126.27p to 132.39p – it was the second worst rise since the start of 2000, behind the 8.43p increase seen 10 years ago in May 2008 (120.83p to 129.26p).
The increases have been driven by a jump in the price of oil, along with the weakening of the pound against the dollar. Oil broke through the $80 a barrel mark twice in May something it hadn’t done since 12 November 2014.
Overall, May saw a 3% increase in the price of a barrel of oil and a 2% drop in the value of the pound against the dollar, making it more expensive for traders.
Regarding impact in the different regions, the North West experienced the biggest rise in prices with a litre going up 5.98p in May to 128.72p. On the other hand, Northern Ireland saw the smallest increase.
RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “May was a hellish month for motorists. Sadly, they have been besieged by pump price rises for three months with nearly 9p a litre being added to petrol since the beginning of March.
“The rising oil price together with a weaker pound is a punitive combination for anyone that drives regularly.”
“In the last week of May the oil price cooled a little to $76 a barrel which is slightly better news for motorists as the RAC’s two-week forecast is currently showing that average prices may even reduce by a penny or so. While this isn’t much, and could easily change in response to oil trading this week, it is at least a sign that the constant rise in forecourt prices may have stopped for the time being.”
He also said there was talk that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) would agree on June 22 to change its tactic of restricting oil supply.