Fuel Prices to Increase as Government's Excise Cut Ends
Topic: Oil and Gas
Sun 2 Aug 2026 at 4:38am
Mon 3 Aug 2026 at 12:00am
The government cut fuel taxes to help people with high living costs.
Fuel prices will go up because the government's tax cut is ending.
The tax rate will also go up because of inflation.
From April 1, the fuel tax was lowered from 52.6 cents to 20.6 cents per liter.
The tax cut was extended to August 2, but the rate went up to 36.6 cents per liter.
This was part of a plan to help Australians and make sure there was enough fuel.
The Treasurer said the tax cut will end at midnight.
The tax cut helped people with high living costs.
The government never meant for the tax cut to be permanent.
What is the fuel tax?
The fuel tax is a sales tax on petrol and diesel.
The tax is paid by fuel importers and sellers, and then passed on to consumers.
The tax is adjusted twice a year.
After the last adjustment, the fuel tax was 52.6 cents per liter.
How has the tax changed?
Price changes won't happen right away
A motoring group spokesperson said prices at the pump may not rise immediately.
It took about a week for the price change to happen last time.
The wholesale price of petrol will go up to about $2 per liter.
The wholesale price of diesel will go up to about $2.35 to $2.40 per liter.
After the next adjustment, the tax rate will go up to about 53.7 cents per liter.
Economists don't think the tax cut was a good idea.
The tax cut was predicted to cost $2.55 billion and could increase inflation.
An economist said interfering with fuel prices is not the best way to help people.
Lowering the price doesn't encourage people to use less fuel.
The economist said there are better ways to help people.
A motoring group spokesperson said the tax cut was helpful, but the tax is important for the government.
The government gets a lot of money from the fuel tax.
It's a hard decision for the government to make.
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Fuel supply is more stable now.
An energy researcher said the supply chain is more resilient now.
The researcher said overall prices have remained steady despite a spike last week.
Many countries have found alternative sources of oil.
These countries have been able to produce more oil, which helps our fuel supply.
This means the world is less dependent on the Middle East for oil.
The price of oil has gone up again because of fighting in the Middle East.
Australia has increased its national stockpile of fuel.
The energy minister said motorists can be confident in Australia's fuel supply.
One thing Australians can be sure of is that our fuel supply is solid and secure.
Diesel supply and prices are a concern.
The energy researcher said the tax cut was a good move at first.
But the researcher thinks a bigger cut for diesel would have been better.
There's a lot of oil for making petrol, but less oil for making diesel.
Diesel prices didn't go down as much as petrol prices after the tax cut.
The researcher recommends not cutting the diesel tax for another month.
High diesel prices will affect the agricultural and freight sectors.
How can I shop around for fuel?
The consumer commission urges people to shop around and use fuel apps.
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