Average diesel prices in Germany climbed just over €2 ($2.33) per liter on Wednesday morning, surpassing $7.50 per US gallon, the ADAC motoring club said. The cheapest grade of petrol (gasoline) stood on average just half a cent below €2 per liter.
Prices rose sharply this week amid market volatility following Saturday’s strikes on Iran and subsequent fighting in the Middle East. Oil production has been disrupted in several countries, and deliveries through the Strait of Hormuz — the route for roughly 20% of global oil exports — are currently precarious or blocked.
Normally, German stations charge more in the mornings to catch commuters, but since Monday prices have climbed steadily as supply disruptions became clearer and Europe reopened for business after the weekend. Compared with about a month ago, diesel is nearly 20% more expensive and petrol over 15% higher.
Wednesday’s levels remain slightly below the monthly average seen in March 2022, when prices spiked after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but are less than €0.15 per liter shy of that earlier peak. ADAC warned drivers to expect queues as people rush to fill up. “Drivers who want to fill up should account for longer waiting times,” the club said. Herbert Rabl, a spokesman for the filling station federation, reported a large rush at petrol stations since Sunday.
France said it would impose controls on filling station prices if needed to keep increases “reasonable.” Economy Minister Roland Lescure told Franceinfo the government saw an increase of a few cents that it considered normal given higher base oil costs and that there was no immediate need for large-scale intervention. He said more than 97% of the country was not affected and urged consumers not to panic-buy, while adding that controls would be used if price rises outpaced underlying per-barrel increases.
While oil prices have jumped since Saturday, Brent crude rose from roughly $70 per barrel at the end of last week to about $80 per barrel on Wednesday.
Across Europe, motorists in the UK, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain have also been queuing to fill up amid similar price rises. In parts of Asia that rely heavily on Middle Eastern oil or are major customers of Iran, urgency has been greater. Myanmar, which imported around 90% of its fuel oil in 2024 and already faces internal supply stresses, saw long lines at pumps. Its military junta announced measures to conserve fuel, ordering half of private vehicles off the roads each day based on license plate numbers, saying the country had about 40 days’ worth of stockpiles and needed to manage supplies systematically.
In the United States, where gasoline is typically cheaper due to domestic production and lower taxes, prices rose more than 5% in recent days. A gallon of regular gasoline averaged $3.19, up from $2.98 a week earlier, according to the American Automobile Association.
Edited by: Elizabeth Schumacher
