Fuel prices fall after record highs

The average price of a litre of petrol and diesel has fallen by nearly half a penny in recent days, the AA said.

Neil Lancefield
Wednesday 01 December 2021 17:56 GMT
Hard-pressed motorists have finally seen a dip in fuel prices from record levels (Peter Byrne/PA)
Hard-pressed motorists have finally seen a dip in fuel prices from record levels (Peter Byrne/PA) (PA Wire)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Hard-pressed motorists have finally seen a dip in fuel prices from record levels.

The average price of a litre of petrol and diesel has fallen by nearly half a penny in recent days, the AA said.

November 2020 was the last time petrol prices fell by that much in a matter of days.

Petrol prices reached a peak of 147.72p per litre on Sunday November 21, while the all-time high for diesel was set at 151.10p per litre a day earlier.

Average prices on Tuesday had dropped to 147.28p for petrol and 150.64p for diesel.

The AA said the drop follows a decrease in wholesale costs, with petrol down 12p per litre since mid-November.

Luke Bosdet, the AA’s fuel price spokesman, said: “Such has been the dramatic fall in the wholesale cost of petrol and diesel that a fall in the pump prices has become inevitable.

“It’s just taken so much longer than has happened over recent years.”

Mr Bosdet said retailers usually hold their prices until supermarkets “seize the initiative” and make cuts, but that did not happened in this instance.

“Without that initial kick, pump prices have stagnated and that is a potentially worrying development if it sets the pattern for the future,” he warned.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in