UAE petrol prices on hold for sixth month in a row

Motorists will continue paying Dh1.80 for Special 95

UAE motorists will pay the same amount at the pumps in September. Reem Mohammed / The National

The cost of filling up at petrol pumps across the UAE in September is to be held at the same rate for the sixth month in a row.

While global oil prices have fluctuated, the Fuel Price Committee has frozen prices since April.

The breakdown per litre is as follows:

• Super 98: Dh1.91

• Special 95: Dh1.80

• Diesel: Dh2.06

Petrol prices in the UAE were liberalised in August 2015 to allow them to move in line with the market.

They reached a high of Dh2.87 in November 2018 before steadying around the Dh2 per litre mark a year later.

Global oil prices fell dramatically with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic as demand slumped amid movement restrictions. In April, US crude fell into negative territory for the first time amid a supply glut.

However, prices have picked up, aided by an Opec+ agreement to cut production and the gradual reopening of economies around the world.

Oil demand is currently at 89 per cent of the levels before the virus spread, but is expected to increase to 92-95 per cent by March next year, according to IHS Markit.

In trading on Thursday morning, oil prices held at a five-month high as Hurricane Laura made landfall at Cameron, Louisiana, near the border with Texas in the US, as a Category 4 storm and was set to affect production and refining.

Brent crude futures for October rose 0.3 per cent to $45.77 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures inched up 1 cent to $43.40 a barrel.