Petrol to go over $1.50 within fortnight
Consumers should shop around, as petrol is the biggest single purchase for most households.
Petrol prices will break through the $1.50-a-litre barrier within a fortnight, after the Australian dollar slipped back below US92c. Motorists are facing the combination of higher crude oil prices and a sharply declining Australian dollar.
If the dollar had stayed at the US$1.03 level that it was trading at in April, prices at the bowser would be around 9c cheaper on average, experts say. But the Aussie dollar's dive back through parity has pushed up unleaded fuel prices to their highest level in four months.
The impact of higher petrol prices is expected to lift prices across the retail sector as higher transport costs for suppliers are pushed on to shoppers. The national average price of unleaded petrol rose 3.4c last week to $1.48 per litre.
Darwin was the most expensive city at $1.60 per litre, with the biggest rises in Brisbane (up 8.7c to $1.53) and Sydney (up 7.6c to $1.50). Melbourne was the cheapest location at $1.45 a litre, up 1.2c, while Adelaide, Perth and Canberra were all below $1.50.
CommSec economist Savanth Sebastian urged consumers to shop around, as petrol is the biggest single purchase for most households every week and another 3c is likely to be added to pump prices over the next 7-10 days.
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