Fuel price relief in festive season

Bunbury drivers will get a Christmas gift at the petrol pump this festive season as fuel prices continue to fall.

Since the start of the month fuel prices in Bunbury have dropped an average of 7.4 cents per litre and are expected to fall up to another 10 cents per litre over the coming weeks.

The price of unleaded petrol in Bunbury has fallen by more than 16c/l since the first week of July.

The average price of unleaded petrol in Bunbury fell to 138.8c/l last week, down from 152c/l in the first week of July.

Diesel prices dropped a similar amount to 142.6c/l.

In the metropolitan area last week, the average cost of unleaded petrol was 126.2c/l and prices had dropped to about 122c/l at Myalup this week.

FuelWatch manager Lynne Gould said prices were expected to continue to fall.

The decreases were reflective of the worldwide trend in oil prices due to an oversupply, Ms Gould said.

She said there was normally a delay of about a month before metropolitan fuel prices were seen in regional areas.

“Our benchmark is the Singapore fuel price and that has dropped quite sharply in the past four weeks, ” she said.

“Generally the prices in the metro area follow the Singapore price of petrol with a one or two week time lag.

“As far as Bunbury and the regions go, in general there is a lag of about four to six weeks.”

Ms Gould said that unlike Perth where there was a weekly price cycle, Bunbury prices remained steady throughout the week.

“There is a lot of variation between retailers, so check prices and shop around, ” Ms Gould said.

While prices were generally lower closer to the metropolitan area, Ms Gould said Busselton bucked the trend.

She said cheaper fuel could often be found in Busselton, compared to Bunbury.

Outlets in Busselton are selling fuel for as much as 5c/l less than Bunbury.