Australia fuel shortages expand to hundreds of service stations
The country biggest supplier, South Korea, has already said that it will cap some exports
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[MELBOURNE] Hundreds of service stations across Australia have reported fuel shortfalls, as the war in the Middle East disrupts global supplies.
At least 600 retail sites across the country have run out of at least one type of fuel, Energy Minister Chris Bowen told parliament on Tuesday (Mar 24). The shortages were mainly concentrated in the two most populous states, New South Wales and Victoria, where it affected about 10 per cent of total outlets.
The near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz since the US and Israel first attacked Iran at the end of last month has cut off about a fifth of the world’s oil, tightening fuel supplies and sending prices soaring. With limited domestic refining capacity, Australia imports more than two-thirds of its petrol, diesel and jet fuel. Its biggest supplier, South Korea, has already said that it will cap some exports.
On Tuesday, the government said that it would lower diesel standards for the next six months to bolster domestic supplies, widening the range of prospective suppliers to include the US, Canada and Europe. Australia had 38 days of petrol and 30 days of diesel left in reserves last week, after tapping stockpiles to meet surging demand.
Prices of petrol and diesel have both jumped, according to Australian Institute of Petroleum data, adding to economic pressures. Australia’s central bank last week raised its key interest rate for a second straight meeting amid efforts to tackle stubborn inflation.
On Wednesday, Australia introduced legislation that will allow its antitrust watchdog to double penalties for false or misleading conduct and cartel behaviour to a maximum of A$100 million (S$89 million) per offense.
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The government had already increased penalties to a maximum of A$50 million, five times higher than what they were, amid reports that prices at the pump had outpaced gains in international benchmarks during the initial period of the Iran conflict. BLOOMBERG
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