Overview
- RAC data show UK petrol fell by 1.8p per litre and diesel by 2.3p last month, leaving both fuels about 1.5p cheaper than at the start of the year.
- Brent crude slipped below $60 a barrel in mid-December, yet the CMA says persistently high retail margins are not explained by operating costs.
- The AA reports wholesale petrol dropped by more than 7p per litre since late November while the average pump price fell by only about two‑thirds of a penny.
- DESNZ says the Fuel Finder price-transparency tool is on track for an early February launch to boost competition at UK forecourts.
- South Africa cut prices from 7 January, with petrol down 62–66c per litre and diesel down 137–150c, though levies such as the R4.01 General Fuel Levy and R2.18 RAF leave taxes totaling about R6.37, or roughly 30.9% of an inland petrol price of R20.64.