Why are Australian petrol prices so high?

Australian fuel prices are driven by international crude oil prices (priced in USD), the AUD/USD exchange rate, fuel excise tax (currently 53.7c/L, full rate, indexed 3 Aug 2026), GST (10%), refining costs, and retail margins. A weak Australian dollar makes imported fuel more expensive even when global oil prices are stable.

What is the fuel excise tax in Australia?

The fuel excise in Australia is currently 53.7 cents per litre (full rate, indexed 3 Aug 2026). It is indexed to CPI and adjusted twice yearly in February and August. The excise applies equally to petrol and diesel.

What is a terminal gate price (TGP)?

A terminal gate price is the wholesale price of fuel at a fuel terminal before transport and retail margins are added. It represents what fuel retailers pay to pick up fuel. The retail pump price is typically 10-15 cents per litre higher than the TGP.

How much tax is on a litre of petrol in Australia?

On a litre of petrol at 200c/L, approximately 71.9c goes to government, made up of 53.7c in fuel excise (full rate, indexed 3 Aug 2026) plus 18.2c in GST. That means roughly 36% of what you pay at the pump goes directly to the government.

Oil Prices, AUD/USD & Fuel Price Drivers

Oil and the dollar

Brent crude is US$93.55 a barrel. With the Australian dollar at 68.12 US cents that is A$137.33, or 86.4c a litre of crude. National wholesale petrol was 198.7c a litre and diesel 250.5c on 12 November 2026. Petrol is 38.5c lower than four weeks earlier, on 15 October 2026, while Brent in Australian dollars is down 10% over the same period.

Measure	Brent, US$	WTI, US$	AUD/USD	Brent, A$
Latest	US$93.55	US$86.56	0.6812	A$137.33
Since last close	+0.85%	+0.03%	-0.57%	+1.43%

Wholesale fuel prices since 2004

Terminal gate prices are what retailers pay for fuel before adding their margin, averaged across the major suppliers by the Australian Institute of Petroleum.

Fuel type

City

Events that moved prices

"Since then" is the change in the price of Brent crude, in Australian dollars, from that date to today.

What makes up the price of fuel?

Enter what you were paying and what you're paying now to see where your money goes, and where the extra cost lands.

What I Used to Pay

c/L

What I Pay Today

c/L

How to read these numbers

Australian fuel is priced off refined petrol and diesel in Singapore, which follow Brent crude. Because both are traded in US dollars, the figure that matters here is Brent in Australian dollars. A weaker dollar makes fuel dearer even when oil is flat. As a rule of thumb, each US$10 a barrel on Brent is worth about 10c a litre at the pump, and each one-cent move in the dollar about 1.4c, usually within one to two weeks.

Crude is not the whole story. In 2026 the cost of turning crude into petrol and diesel and shipping it here rose much faster than crude itself, so wholesale prices have stayed high even when oil eased. Why fuel rose faster than oil in 2026 has the figures.

What's driving Australian fuel prices right now?

Oil and the dollar

Wholesale fuel prices since 2004

Events that moved prices

What makes up the price of fuel?

Used to pay

Pay now

How to read these numbers

Further reading