KEY POINTS:
A long-weekend reprieve from fuel price rises ended for most motorists yesterday with hikes at Mobil, Caltex and Shell pumps.
The three oil majors raised their main-centre prices for 91-octane petrol to 188.9c a litre and for diesel to 156.9c, in line with record levels set by BP almost a week ago.
But industry minnow Gull was still holding out last night at semi-discounted prices 5c below the big four suppliers for 91-octane and 7c less for diesel - and hoping to stay down for at least another day or so.
Mobil and Caltex both followed BP's price rises last week, but dropped down again after Shell and Gull refused to follow them, and consumer groups appealed for hard-hit motorists to be given a break over the Anzac weekend.
Gull's response to BP's increases was to press ahead with a pre-arranged discount of 5c a litre, which was to have been a short-term deal only, but from which it has so far rebounded by only 3c.
General manager Dave Bodger said last night that although refined fuel import prices quoted from Singaporean refineries increased yesterday, these would have to hold up for several days before he would need to recover his costs at the pumps. Shell spokeswoman Jackie Maitland said international cost pressures had forced the company to follow the other three oil majors after it succeeded in maintaining its old prices throughout the volatility of the past week.
BP remains at the top of the price list for its "boutique" super-charged 98-octane petrol, which crashed over the $2 barrier last week to 202.9c a litre.
That compares with Mobil's new price of 199.9c for its 98-octane brand, and 193.9c for Gull's biofuel-assisted petrol of the same rating.
