Bowser blowout as AUD dips

Petrol prices hit a historic high as a consequence of the weaker Australian dollar before oil prices fell in recent months, the competition watchdog has confirmed.

Capital city motorists paid an average of 150.6c a litre for regular unleaded petrol in the year to June, up 9.3c on the previous year, the regulator says.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission published the figures yesterday, saying that if the price was adjusted to account for inflation, it was the third highest average on record.

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"This was primarily driven by the international oil price and the Australian-US dollar exchange rate," chairman Rod Sims said.

In early 2014, the Australian dollar fell below US87c for the first time since mid-2010, which the commission said "drove the price higher for motorists at the bowser".

Mr Sims noted that international refined petrol prices had dropped by 20c a litre since July.

"As the international price is such a large component of the retail price, this should be a welcome relief for motorists," he said.

Despite the recent pain for motorists, the commission said Australians paid among the lowest prices for fuel in the developed world because of relatively low taxes.During the June quarter, Australian petrol prices were the fourth lowest among the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development nations.