But until the prices fall, motorists will be stuck hunting for cheap fuel with the help of apps like FuelCheck and myNRMA, or by being choosy about where to fill up. A recent report from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission named Coles Express as the nation’s highest-priced petrol retailer, along with major chains like BP and Caltex, while independents tended to be much cheaper.

On Thursday, there was a whopping 12 cent difference between Wagga’s cheapest and most expensive regular unleaded, with prices as high as 159.9 per litre. Metro Fuel at Ashmont continued its trend as the city’s cheapest petrol retailer, selling for 147.5.

The price hikes had come after uncertainty in the global oil market and a shortage in the national supply, which had driven the surging cost of fuel.

However, a report from the NRMA suggested those same external forces were starting to exert downward pressure on the market. Over the past week, the average Mogas price rose 0.7 cents per litre while the Australian dollar rose 0.5 cents to 75.7 cents against the US dollar.

“Given current market forces, average unleaded petrol prices are expected to fall to 141 cents per litre in the next 2-3 weeks,” the NRMA report said.

This week, Wagga’s average unleaded price climbed to 152.8 from 148.1 last week, while diesel had made a similar jump from 150.6 to 154.3. Cootamundra and Temora had the region’s dearest fuel, while travellers heading north through Yass could save with an average price of just 142.8.