Fuels: first drop in the average price of diesel at the pump in the EU after a month of records
The average price of diesel in the European Union fell for the first time after four weeks of increases, according to the European Commission.
Quick Look
The average price of diesel in the European Union fell by nine cents to 2.15 euros per liter, marking a first lull after four weeks of consecutive increases fueled by geopolitical tensions.
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Why It Matters
Fuel prices have increased due to geopolitical tensions and navigation difficulties in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea.
Finally a lull. The average price of a liter of diesel at the pump in the European Union fell for the first time after four consecutive weeks of increases peaking at a record level, according to a compilation of national data published Thursday by the European Commission.
The new weekly average fell by nine cents, to 2.15 euros per liter. This reflects the prices displayed by service stations, sometimes at the start of the week or during the previous week, and transmitted to Brussels by the national authorities.
In France, diesel, the price of which has been falling slowly for several days, was listed on Thursday morning at just over 2.35 euros per liter on average, according to an AFP calculation based on prices transmitted by more than 9,000 stations via a government site. The peak was reached on September 20, at nearly 2.41 euros. The SP95-E10, relatively stable for several days, is at almost 2.15 euros, against a peak at 2.18.
In the EU, only one of the 27 member states, Cyprus, recorded a new record for diesel in data updated on Thursday, compared to twelve countries the previous week, according to an AFP analysis based on figures available since 2005. These data, taken from the Commission's oil bulletin, include taxes, which vary between countries and represent on average 40% of the price paid at the pump in the bloc, but do not take into account targeted aid, such as that for large rollers in France.
The aggregate average at the level of the 27 is weighted according to the fuel consumption of each member state in 2024. It was 1.59 euros per liter in February, before the outbreak of war in the Middle East by American-Israeli strikes on Iran. Since the end of February, fuel prices have been pushed up by the difficulty of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, where around 20% of the world's hydrocarbons usually transit, and subsequently by the blockade of Saudi exports in the Red Sea by the Houthis and Ukrainian strikes against Russian refineries.
Open Questions
- Will this drop in diesel prices continue in the coming weeks?
