Call for action over fuel price hike

RACQ has called out major fuel retailers for pumping up prices – including those in Moreton Bay – less than three days after conflict broke out in the Middle East.

The state’s peak motoring body has referred fuel companies to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for investigation.

At the time of writing yesterday (March 4), many fuel stations across Moreton Bay were charging 219.9 cents per litre for regular unleaded petrol.

There were some exceptions, including 169.9cpl in Redcliffe, 191.9cpl in Deception Bay, 192.9cpl in Lawnton and 194.9 on Anzac Ave, Kallangur..

At 9am Tuesday (March 3) the highest price for regular unleaded in South-East Queensland was 213.9 cents per litre (cpl).

However, by 10am, around 40 sites had hiked their prices to 219.9cpl, and by 9am today a total of 259 sites (45 per cent) followed.

“There is no good reason for fuel companies to be increasing their prices just days after conflict broke out in the region,” RACQ’s Principal Economic and Affordability Specialist Dr Ian Jeffreys said.

“Yes, we’ve seen an increase in the global oil price, but that usually takes around two weeks to flow through to bowsers here in Australia, not two days.

“While we’ve seen a steady uptick in wholesale prices over the past week, we’re yet to see any significant additional spike because of the conflict.

“South-East Queensland is already at the expensive phase of the price cycle. Before this hike, many fuel stations were already charging more than 50cpl above the average wholesale price.”

Dr Jeffreys added: “When Russia invaded Ukraine, we didn’t see this kind of behaviour, the price cycle continued as normal and price rises were absorbed into the cycle.

“If anything, prices in SEQ should be falling right now and increases in wholesale price should be absorbed into the discounting phase, meaning our next cheap phase wouldn’t be as cheap.”

RACQ’s Annual Fuel Price Report showed Brisbane motorists once again paid more for unleaded last year than drivers in any other Australian capital.

Brisbane’s 2025 average for regular unleaded was 185.2cpl, nearly 11 cents more than Perth’s average (174.3cpl).