{"id":383334,"date":"2026-04-17T00:19:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T00:19:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/383334\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T00:19:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T00:19:10","slug":"new-figures-reveal-how-much-the-price-of-fuel-surged-in-march","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/383334\/","title":{"rendered":"New figures reveal how much the price of fuel surged in March"},"content":{"rendered":"

Petrol and diesel prices have recorded their largest monthly increases on record, with both fuels jumping sharply in March due to the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, according to new figures from Stats NZ released today.<\/p>\n

Stats NZ said petrol prices rose 18.6% between February and March 2026, while diesel prices<\/a> surged 42.6% over the same period.<\/p>\n

It is the biggest monthly increase for both fuel types since the agency began publishing monthly vehicle fuel price movements in July 2011.<\/p>\n

The record\u2011breaking spike coincided with Iran\u2019s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz<\/a> for much of March \u2014 a critical global shipping route through which about 20% of the world\u2019s oil exports normally pass.<\/p>\n

The disruption triggered a global fuel crisis, sending the price of Brent crude oil soaring from around US$70 a barrel to peaks above US$119.<\/p>\n

Motorists continue to feel pinched at the pumps as prices rise. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n

A fragile ceasefire<\/a> remains in place between the United States and Iran, though global oil markets<\/a> continue to face uncertainty over supply and shipping security in the region.<\/p>\n

The March surge marked a sharp reversal from earlier in the year. Stats NZ said both petrol and diesel prices fell in January and February before surging last month.<\/p>\n

Despite those earlier drops, fuel prices are now also significantly higher than a year ago.<\/p>\n

In the 12 months to March 2026, petrol prices climbed 13.9%, while diesel prices were up a steep 36.9%.<\/p>\n

Stats NZ collected fuel price data using a mix of administrative information provided directly by petrol companies and weekly price checks at service stations around the country.<\/p>\n

Average prices for diesel and petrol \u2014 including 91 and 95\/98 octane \u2014 were then calculated to reflect the price changes experienced by households nationwide.<\/p>\n

Monthly movements were measured by comparing the average prices for the current month with those of the previous month.<\/p>\n

\"Several<\/p>\n

Several petrol stations ran out of fuel on Thursday and Friday. Photo: RNZ \/ Quin Tauetau (Source: rnz.co.nz)<\/p>\n

Fuel spend up 15% annually, Westpac report finds<\/p>\n

Spending on fuel has increased by 15% compared to the same time last year, according to new Westpac data<\/a>, as high global prices continue to put pressure on Kiwis.<\/p>\n

The bank\u2019s March card spending report has revealed motorists are spending more on petrol but getting less in return, with the average volume of fuel purchased per transaction down around 6% to 8%.<\/p>\n

At the same time, the average price of 91 unleaded climbed by $1.04 per litre nationwide \u2014 a 40% increase \u2014 while diesel prices surged by $1.90 per litre over the same period.<\/p>\n

Spending on fuel around the country had also continued to track higher into early April.<\/p>\n

Airfares, food prices<\/p>\n

Stats NZ also provided updated data on the price of airfares and food today.<\/p>\n

Domestic airfares decreased 14.4%, and international airfares increased 3.5% in March 2026 compared with February 2026.<\/p>\n

Similarly, domestic airfares dropped 7.3%, and international airfares rose 9.8%in the 12 months to March 2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cTravellers typically book and pay for airfares in advance, so price changes reflect fares that were set up to 12 months ago,\u201d prices and deflators spokesperson Nicola Growden said.<\/p>\n

Food prices increased 3.4% in the 12 months to March 2026, following a 4.5% rise in the 12 months to February 2026.<\/p>\n

Food prices fell 0.6% in March 2026 compared with February 2026.<\/p>\n

The morning’s headlines in 90 seconds, including new rumours about Christopher Luxon facing a leadership challenge, and Victoria Beckham addresses her family feud. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Petrol and diesel prices have recorded their largest monthly increases on record, with both fuels jumping sharply in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":383335,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[138,1667,111,43,139,69],"class_list":{"0":"post-383334","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-zealand","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-energy","10":"tag-new-zealand","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-newzealand","13":"tag-nz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383334","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=383334"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/383334\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/383335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=383334"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=383334"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=383334"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}