The CMA criticised retailers for not participating in its road petrol market research.
A competition monitor found that store fuel costs were 5p per litre higher in 2022 than before the outbreak.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has stated that factors other than the incursion of Ukraine have affected the price of petrol at the pump and that a lack of competition has contributed to price hikes.
The regulator was critical of retailers, in particular supermarkets.
“Higher pump prices cannot be solely attributed to factors beyond the control of retailers,” stated the CMA.
As part of the CMA’s study of the road petroleum market, the supermarkets’ evidence was criticized.
The CMA wasn’t happy with all supermarkets’ testimony, even if their involvement varied.
“Important information was not obtained until late in the day and after multiple rounds of information collection.
Given our concerns about a market of such significance to millions of motorists, we must determine what is going on.
To “get to the heart of the matter,” the CMA will conduct “formal interviews” with supermarkets’ senior management.
The CMA did note that supermarkets continue to be the cheapest retailers of fuel. But that “at least one” supermarket has “significantly increased” its internal forward-looking fuel margin objectives.
The regulator stated that other supermarkets may have adjusted their pricing strategies accordingly after recognizing this trend.
Concern was also expressed over probable evidence of weaker diesel competition than petrol since the beginning of this year.
Despite the volatility of diesel wholesale prices, this year’s high diesel margins “appear to have persisted for longer than anticipated,” according to the organization.
The watchdog has also been investigating price increases in the grocery market and has announced that it will intensify its efforts to determine whether competition failures have contributed to higher grocery prices.
To date, the organization has stated that global factors have been the primary driver of grocery price increases, and it has seen no evidence of specific competition concerns in the grocery industry.
