Fuel excise cut savings eroded by rising petrol prices amid increasing cost of living pressures

theguardian.com:

Petrol prices rose for a third week in a row as global factors undermine the Morrison government’s much-touted temporary cut in fuel excise aimed at easing cost of living pressures.

The Australian Institute of Petroleum said the national average for petrol prices rose by a further 1.4 cents to 179.6 cents a litre in the past week.

But cities like Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane and Adelaide are paying well over 180 cents a litre, and regional Northern Territory more that $2.

“Unfortunately oil prices are still rising,” Commonwealth securities chief economist, Craig James said.

James calculates that since the start of 2022, Brent crude oil has risen by 44.5%.

“It is no surprise that consumer prices are soaring across the globe,” he said.

The latest lift in oil prices came as the Group of Seven nations announced a ban on Russian oil, further cutting the amount of oil available to meet global demand.

At a time of rising inflation and interest rates, the government and the Reserve Bank of Australia have pointed to consumers’ savings buffer built during the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, many households are already finding budgeting difficult.

A survey by financial comparison website Finder revealed almost one-in-three Australian homeowners were feeling the pinch even before the RBA raised the cash rate for the time since 2010.

That increase will be passed on to borrowers in full by the four big banks and other lenders in the coming weeks.

Finder’s senior editor, Sarah Megginson, said this is likely to cause mortgage stress to rise again in May and June as monthly repayments inflate.

“The past two years have seen a record number of buyers enter the property market, but many haven’t budgeted for a rainy day,” she said.

She advised those borrowers