This is news that may go some way towards easing French anger. Thanks to the strategic reserves released by the government, diesel prices will fall by up to 18 cents per litre from Sunday 1 November. That means a cut "of around 10 euros for a full tank", the prime minister promises.
"Facing a crisis we did not choose, [...] the state is shouldering its responsibilities," Sébastien Lecornu said on X on Monday 12 October, after a meeting with fuel distributors. "This reduction will also feed through to the price of domestic heating oil, to diesel sold to transport professionals as well as to off-road diesel, used by farmers, fishers and construction workers," the resident of Matignon also stressed.
This measure, scheduled to run until the end of January, is made possible by "selling at cost price 10 million barrels of diesel from our strategic reserves" bought before the start of the war in Iran, at 0.28 euro per litre.
53 litres of diesel for one day’s wages
Government support seemed inevitable. France is currently one of the EU countries where pump prices are highest, with an average of 2.355 euros per litre of diesel as of 5 October, according to the comparison site fuel-price (source in French). That is well above the EU-27 average of 2.149 euros per litre. Only Finland (2.553 euros), the Netherlands (2.506 euros) and Denmark (2.488 euros) are more expensive.
However, the surge in prices at the pump is not limited to France. Among its European neighbours, prices are also reaching record levels. In Belgium, a litre sells for an average of 2.349 euros, compared with 2.254 euros in Germany and 2.273 euros in Italy.
Spain, meanwhile, is one of the countries with the lowest average price, with a litre selling for 1.918 euros.
But the price displayed at the pump is not enough to gauge how hard the bill hits motorists. Wage levels also play a decisive role. While Spain appears to be doing better, a worker on the country’s average wage can buy 54.2 litres of diesel with one day’s pay. In France, one working day buys 52.8 litres, compared with 47 litres in Italy and 62.3 litres in Germany.
And when it comes to filling up the tank, France sits around the European average, with a full tank equivalent to 4.4% of the average net monthly wage.
The situation is broadly similar for petrol. France is among the countries where a litre is most expensive, at an average of 2.212 euros on 5 October. Here too, the country’s average prices are much higher than those in the EU (2.006 euros), but below the average litre price in Denmark (2.605 euros, a figure that takes into account potential discounts), the Netherlands (2.432 euros) and Finland (2.370 euros).
However, France is also close to the European average when the petrol price per litre is set against the cost of living. One day’s work buys 56.2 litres, compared with an EU average of 57.4 litres.
Heating oil far pricier than the European average
Motorists are not the only ones bearing the brunt of soaring energy prices. As winter approaches, heating costs are also a source of concern for households that use heating oil. On 5 October, 1,000 litres of domestic heating oil were selling for 1,907.08 euros in France, 165.14 euros more than the EU average and 179.09 euros more than in the euro area, according to the European Commission’s figures.
In recent months, prices in France have followed the same trajectory as in Portugal and Italy, where 1,000 litres of domestic heating oil now sell for 2,204 euros and 2,063.10 euros respectively.
Other countries have nonetheless managed to keep prices more affordable. This is notably the case in Germany, where heating oil sells for 1,726.40 euros per 1,000 litres. In Belgium and Spain, heating oil is cheaper still, at 1,533.40 and 1,495.34 euros respectively, 19.6% and 21.6% less than in France.