Record rises in the cost of fuel

Diesel prices have seen the highest month-on-month increase this century according to the AA.

Fleets operating petrol vehicles have also been hit hard with the rises in the cost of petrol at the second highest level since the start of the millennium.

Between mid-April and mid-May, the price of diesel shot up 6.76 pence per litre, from 117.41p to 124.17p. This has added £3.38 to the cost of filling a typical 50-litre fuel tank.

The previous record rise, of 5.6p per litre, was between October and November last year.

What’s more, the average price of petrol has also risen by 4.49p per litre in the past month, from 108.06p to 112.55p.

This narrowly misses the 4.6p record monthly increase in petrol prices between March and April 2006.

AA president, Edmund King, said the price rises in recent days were of a magnitude only exceeded in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, when the price of petrol rose almost 3.5p in a week.

He said what alarms the AA most is the stream of comments coming from the industry and producers saying that oil is over-priced – the finger of blame being pointed at market speculators.

Oil prices have doubled since last year and this is not just due to strong demand from China and other nations, Kind added. While huge profits are made in the financial centres, an increasing number of car-owners are becoming desperate and businesses suffer from the hit on consumer spending.