Brussels, 21 October. Prices for fuel and lubricants in the European Union in September were 31.4% higher than in September 2025, according to Eurostat data; the annual increase is accelerating: in July it was 16.9% and in August 23.8%.
The sharpest annual increases were in Bulgaria (42.2%), Estonia (40.6%) and Lithuania (40.2%); in another 12 EU countries growth exceeded 30%. In early October, according to AFP, the average price of diesel in the EU reached a record €2.24 per litre, and 12 countries, including Belgium, Italy, Poland and Romania, set all-time highs at the time. The differences in prices between countries are explained by excise duties and taxes, which vary several-fold across the EU.
Diesel, according to InfoTEK's calculation, is rising faster than petrol in the large EU countries. In France a litre of diesel cost €2.35 on 19 October, 47.8% more than a year earlier, while petrol cost €2.15, up 28.7%; in Germany diesel costs €2.27 (+41.9%) and petrol €2.13 (+27.5%), in Italy €2.24 and €2.02 (+38.3% and +19.5%), and in Spain €1.89 and €1.76 (+35% and +20.5%). Over the past month diesel became slightly cheaper in all four countries, by 7% in Germany, while petrol fell everywhere except France, where the price did not change.
In Italy, a large-scale protest by hauliers blocking roads in the south of the country has created a risk of disruption to supplies of food and household appliances: one of the large supermarket chains confirmed to a TASS correspondent that shelves were emptying precisely because of the blockade. In Paris, police announced a curfew around Place de la République and Les Halles for the third night in a row, from 23:00 on Wednesday to 6:00 on Thursday.
What it means: Fuel in the European Union is getting more expensive ever faster: by almost a third in a year, and diesel in the large countries by 35–48%. Over the past month prices have eased slightly, but the protests in France and Italy continue.
Who benefits: The price rise hits hardest those who drive on diesel, above all hauliers: in Italy their protest is already leaving supermarket shelves empty. Who benefits from rising prices is not stated in the sources; the differences between countries, according to InfoTEK's calculation, are largely explained by taxes.
Background: Year-on-year growth in prices for fuel and lubricants in the EU has been recorded for at least the third month in a row.
List of sources used: InfoTEK, TASS, Anadolu
Artificial intelligence was used in preparing this material.
