EU diesel price hits record €2.24 a litre

The average pump price of diesel across the European Union has reached a record 2.24 euros per litre, European Commission data published Thursday showed.

That is equivalent to $9.60 per US gallon and compares with 1.59 euros per litre in February, before war erupted in the Middle East.

An AFP analysis of national data submitted weekly to Brussels since 2005 found that 12 EU member states recorded fresh all-time highs, including Belgium, Italy, Romania and Poland.

Diesel, the main fuel used by road freight transport and farming machinery, exceeded 2.50 euros per litre in Denmark, the Netherlands and Finland. It reached 2.44 euros in Germany.

In Belgium, diesel averaged 2.43 euros per litre on Monday, up from 2.39 euros the previous week. In Italy, it rose by seven cents to 2.35 euros. In France, excluding overseas territories and Corsica, filling stations charged an average of 2.37 euros per litre, a slight decline.

Across the EU, the average price rose by one cent per litre over the latest week. The Commission figures include taxes, which vary by country and account for 40 percent on average of the pump price across the bloc, but do not include targeted subsidies such as assistance for high-mileage drivers in France.

The EU average is weighted according to each member state's fuel consumption in 2024. Prices have been driven higher since February by the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a Houthi blockade of Saudi exports in the Red Sea and Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries.