MEDIA RELEASE
10 November 2005
AUSTRALIAN PETROL PRICES STILL TOO HIGH
Australian petrol prices have reached historically high levels against international
benchmarks, in direct contrast to claims that high prices are an international reality.
The Australian Automobile Association (AAA) today released figures which show the
gap between the international petrol price benchmark, MOGAS, and prices in
Australian capital cities were at record highs during October 2005.
AAA Director of Research and Policy, John Metcalfe, said the figures refute claims
from oil companies, the federal Government and the Australian Competition and
Consumer Commission that the high petrol prices were purely the result of
international price movements.
“Conventional wisdom is that petrol prices in Australia closely follow the Singapore
MOGAS 95 unleaded petrol price - that’s the price the ACCC uses as its benchmark
for assessing domestic retail prices,” Mr Metcalfe said.
“Despite claims linking Australian prices to international prices, the margin between
retail prices in Australian capital cities and the MOGAS price was significantly higher
during October than the average margin for the previous 21 months.
“Even allowing for the fact that margins tend to vary over time, these figures show
motorists in Australian capital cities were paying well above the international
benchmark.”
Mr Metcalfe presented the following price differentials between MOGAS and capital
city prices (cpl):
City








Brisbane
Sydney
Canberra
Melbourne
Hobart
Adelaide
Perth
Darwin
Jan 04 to Sep 05
Average
50.1
59.3
60.3
57.1
64.9
58.8
56.8
64.8
October 05
58.5
66.8
73.4
66.5
75.7
67.1
65.5
77.2
Mr Metcalfe said the differential between MOGAS and, for example, the Darwin retail
price, includes Government excise (38.1cpl), GST, freight (from Singapore),
insurance, handling and the oil companies’ margins.
“Based on the longer term average, capital city retail prices during October ought to
have been between 7.5cpl and 13.1cpl lower than they were.
Constituent Members
2.
“These figures call into question claims by oil companies that there is intense
competition in capital cities.
“If competition is so intense, why is it that our prices are so much higher than the
international benchmark?
The figures released by the AAA indicate that the difference between the October
margin and the longer term average was highest in Hobart (10.8cpl), Darwin (12.5
cpl) and Canberra (13.1cpl).
“These three cities are not even included in the ACCC’s weekly petrol pricing
snapshot,” Mr Metcalfe noted.
* * * * * *
Contacts:
John Metcalfe
Allan Yates
AAA
AAA
0418 978 899
0421 150 229
Difference Between Average Capital City Petrol Price and International
Benchmark Price (MOGAS)
cents per litre
70
65
60
55
Oct 05
Sep 05
Aug 05
Jul 05
Jun 05
May 05
Apr 05
Mar 05
Feb 05
Jan 05
Dec 04
Nov 04
Oct 04
Sep 04
Aug 04
Jul 04
Jun 04
May 04
Apr 04
Mar 04
Feb 04
Jan 04
50
Sources: FUELtrac; www.aip.com.au