How costly is fuel in Canada?
In line with CAA’s day by day fuel worth tracker, Canadians paid a mean of $1.68 per litre on Could 2, 2024. That’s six cents greater than the bottom common worth within the earlier 30 days, and 12.3 cents a couple of 12 months in the past.
What nationwide averages don’t present, although, are the unpredictable worth spikes skilled in some locales. Working example? On April 18, 2024, Toronto drivers woke as much as discover fuel costs had climbed from $1.65 to $1.79 per litre in a single day.
That 14-cent-per-litre improve meant that Ford F-150 homeowners would spend as much as $19 extra filling their tanks, Dodge Durango drivers would pay an additional $13 and Toyota Highlander drivers would pay $9 extra per fill-up. It will price an additional $8 to fill a household automotive just like the Hyundai Sonata or Chevrolet Malibu, and $7 for smaller vehicles just like the Honda Civic. Use a fleet of heavy vehicles for your small business? That Silverado 2500 or Ram 2500 HD will price you $20 to $35 extra to fill.
These are massive jumps, however fuel costs are nonetheless nicely under what they had been on the top of the pandemic. In the summertime of 2022, the nationwide common worth reached an eye-watering $2.11 per litre, says price-tracking web site GasBuddy.com.
In line with the Canadian Fuels Affiliation, Vancouver had Canada’s highest common fuel costs in 2023, adopted by St. John’s, Charlottetown, Montreal and Halifax.
For those who’re annoyed by wildly fluctuating fuel costs, you’re not alone. Under, I’ll provide you with straightforward fuel-saving suggestions that would trim your fuel payments by 15% or extra. However first, let’s check out what impacts fuel costs in Canada.
Why do fuel costs go up and down?
The worth you pay for a litre of fuel on the pumps contains many prices and taxes that change between international locations, provinces and even areas—however that’s solely a part of the story. To know what impacts fuel costs, it helps to know how crude oil is processed, and why it’s in such excessive demand.
Understanding crude oil
Crude oil is a extremely worthwhile substance, discovered deep underground. It’s manufactured from historic lifeless stuff—animals and crops that lived thousands and thousands of years in the past. The worth of crude oil lies in its substances, which we use to make issues like plastic, artificial rubber, detergents, heating oil, jet gasoline, engine oil, asphalt and, in fact, the gasoline powering our vehicles.