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Key Points
- Jim Chalmers says retailers should not use conflict to “gouge” customers.
- Energy Minister Chris Bowen has warned Australian consumers against “panic buying”.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has reached out to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) with a request to keep a close watch on petrol pricing practices. He cautioned service stations against any “opportunistic” price hikes as tensions in the Middle East pose a threat to global oil prices.
The ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran has led to a surge in oil prices for the third day in a row. The critical Strait of Hormuz, a vital channel at Iran’s southern border responsible for the passage of about 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas, is currently inaccessible.
According to local media in Iran, the country has issued warnings of potential attacks on any vessels attempting to navigate through this crucial maritime route.
In response to these developments, Chalmers penned a letter to the executive director of the ACCC on Tuesday. He emphasized that the unfolding situation should not be exploited by retailers to unjustly elevate prices beyond what global events dictate.
Meanwhile, Energy Minister Chris Bowen held discussions with oil refining companies on Tuesday. He reported that they have provided assurances that oil supply will remain uninterrupted until at least May.
Bowen said Australia had a “good stock of petrol in reserve”, and there was no immediate threat to petrol supplies in the country.
He advised consumers that there was no need for “panic buying” and that doing so would only “make things get worse”.
“There’s no need to rush to the service station and fill up,” he said while speaking to reporters in Canberra.
Bowen said the refining companies told him they had no plans to increase the price of petrol until the price of oil increase flowed through to Australia.
“There will be impacts from this crisis on petrol prices, but we don’t want to see anybody profiteering unnecessarily or unjustifiably from this very difficult circumstance. I have great confidence that the refineries won’t be doing that.”
Some retailers in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane are selling E10 petrol for well over $2 a litre, with diesel prices even higher in some areas.
But economists said the high costs were driven by the regular price cycle, with further cost increases from the Middle East war yet to hit Australian commuters.
— With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.
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