Fuel Relief: Gasoline and Diesel Prices Finally Ease in Four Months, but Uncertainty Remains

This week, there was a small relief in the price of gasoline, marking its first decrease in four months and ending a streak of fifteen consecutive weekly increases. Diesel prices have also fallen for three consecutive weeks, following a drop in the price of crude oil, its main raw material, which is currently around $84 per barrel. This is down from the $90 it reached in mid-April.

In Spain, the average price of a liter of gasoline was 1.68 euros, a 0.1% decrease from the previous week, while diesel fell by 0.6% to 1.53 euros. The overall increase in prices so far in 2024 is close to 10% for gasoline and 2.5% for diesel. The initial months of the Russian invasion of Ukraine led to a higher increase in diesel prices compared to gasoline, as Russia is a major producer of diesel fuel.

Filling up a tank of gasoline today costs around 92.7 euros for an average tank (55 liters), which is 4.7 euros more than a year ago. For diesel vehicles, the cost is 84.2 euros, an increase of 5.3 euros from May 2023. While prices have risen compared to before the war in Ukraine, they are still below the peak prices seen in July 2022.

Across the eurozone, the average price of gasoline is now at $185 per liter and diesel averages $165 per liter respectively; both have fallen last week due to various factors such as lower oil demand and refining costs.

The price of automotive fuels is influenced by several factors including the price of oil, refining costs and taxes with OPEC likely to maintain its supply cuts to keep oil above $80 per barrel.

Refineries are currently facing an easier situation compared to the energy crisis providing some relief to consumers facing high fuel costs.

Overall despite some relief this week on fuel prices there’s still uncertainty on how long it will last as many factors are at play including geopolitical tensions and global economic outlooks that could impact fuel demand and supply chains globally