The average price for diesel in Sydney is currently 190.1 cents per litre, with a wholesale price of 176.3 cents per litre.
However, drivers are being urged to shop around as not all petrol stations offer equal value.
An analysis by NRMA showed more than a 60 cent disparity between Sydney’s cheapest and most expensive unleaded petrol.
While 36 per pent of service stations in Sydney are selling regular unleaded for 174.9 cents per litre or less today, almost as many (31 per cent) were advertising at the maximum price of 229.9 cents per litre.
This represents the difference between paying $87.45 or $115 for a 50-litre tank of petrol.
A map of Melbourne’s current petrol prices tells a similar tale of two price sets, with a majority sitting under 180 cents a litre, but many others already setting their price to the top-of-the-cycle rate of 229.9.
However, even at the bottom of the price cycle, petrol prices are no longer as competitive across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
The wholesale price for regular unleaded petrol fell to a low of 171.1 cents per litre last week, but Sydney’s average price fell to only 181 cents per litre before starting to rise.
It was a similar story in Brisbane and Melbourne but in contrast, the average prices in both Adelaide and Perth fell to as low as 169 cents per litre.
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“The inflationary pressures on the economy caused by high fuel prices has been reported on extensively and added to that, families are exposed to higher prices in our biggest cities due to a lack of competition at the bottom and top of the price cycles,” NRMA spokesperson Peter Khoury said.
Khoury urged holidaymakers to do their research before filling their tanks this weekend.
“If you are heading away there is every chance you will drive through or to a place where petrol prices are cheaper,” he said.