Petrol and diesel prices have remained the same for seven weeks - the longest period without change since April 2009.
Prices for petrol and diesel were unchanged throughout October, at $2.10 a litre for 91 octane petrol in the main centres, and $1.47 a litre for diesel at most outlets.
``But this doesn't mean commodity prices have been stable, with oil prices rising US$10 a barrel during the month, and refined petrol prices up about 4 US cents per litre by month end. Fortunately the rising Kiwi dollar protected motorists from a price increase,'' AA PetrolWatch spokesperson Mark Stockdale said today (Wednesday).
It was typical at this time of year for oil and refined fuel prices to rise as countries stockpiled fuels for the northern hemisphere winter.
``So far this year, fuel prices have risen 10 cents per litre since January. The same was true this time last year. But in the period from October to December 2010, prices rose nearly 20 cents per litre in response to sharply rising commodity prices, and we anticipate a similar trend in the remaining months of 2011. The only thing that might soften the blow is the unusually high exchange rate, but motorists should not expect this to keep offsetting rising commodity prices,'' Mr Stockdale said in a statement.
