Fuel Up 20 Percent in Six Months, and the Valley Watches the Pump

Petrol prices in Italy have increased by roughly 20 percent over the past six months, according to The Local Italy, which has published a guide to what drivers should now expect to pay at the pump, where fuel is cheapest, and what may come next. The same outlet reports that fuel prices are climbing across Europe, with the cost of filling a tank varying sharply between countries because governments are taking different measures to cushion the rise.

The comparison matters because the gap between one country and another is now a matter of national policy as much as of crude prices. The Local Italy frames the divergence as partly a consequence of how each government has chosen to respond to the crisis, which means the price a driver pays at a given station reflects decisions taken in a capital as much as conditions on the world market.