2 Nov 2018

Petrol prices dropped by 10 cents a litre in October

3:54 pm on 2 November 2018

Motorists can expect to keep filling up with cheaper fuel as global crude oil prices fall.

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Photo: 123RF

The national average price of fuel dropped by 10 cents a litre in October, after reaching a 30-year high of $2.48 a litre.

The price drop is a response to crude oil prices, which have fallen by $10 a barrel, AA petrolwatch spokesperson Mark Stockdale said.

"Globally those commodity prices that had been going up - which was why our prices at the pump had been going up - now seem to have turned a corner and they're coming down and the fuel companies are dropping their prices at the pump."

Mr Stockdale said the drop in fuel prices is not a response to pressures from the government.

"All countries around the world were facing high fuel prices and there are lots of countries where motorists were complaining about high fuel prices and the government were also concerned about that so what was happening in New Zealand wasn't unique and it's just that we're subject to what happens globally around the supply and demand."

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said last month motorists were being fleeced at the pump, saying New Zealanders pay the highest pre-tax cost for fuel in the OECD.

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