THE cost of fuel may reach its highest level ever in the coming weeks, according to the AA.
The devaluation of the pound and stock market speculation are having an effect on prices at the forecourt with motorists bearing the brunt of spiralling costs.
The average cost of petrol in Yorkshire and the Humber currently stands at 137.6p a litre whilst diesel is setting back motorists 144.2p a litre.
Figures released by HM Revenue and Customs showed that January's UK petrol sales fell to the lowest tracked by the Government in 23 years.
Drivers consumed 1.465 billion litres of petrol last month, down 14 million litres on the previous all-time low set in March last year and nearly 100 million litres below December's consumption (1.564 billion litres).
AA president Edmund King said: "Speculators have pumped up the wholesale price of petrol at a time of year when cars consume the most and when the concern is normally with imported diesel prices.
"Currency gambling has devalued the pound, adding a further 1.6p a litre to the 7.9p-a-litre increase in the cost of wholesale petrol since the start of the year.
"When the Government considers where it's going to get new revenue for the next financial year, it shouldn't knock on drivers' windows and demand more fuel duty – they have nothing left to give. Milking this cash cow has turned into flogging a dead horse."
