1970's Petrol Fuel Prices version 2000's?

northantsandy

On the news the other day, they stated that a barrell of crude, what most car fuel is made out of, is around $96 a barrell, nowhere near the heady days of the 1970's when crude broke $100 a barrell.

Even so, the cost of a gallon (1 Gallon=4.55 Litres I Spy fans) is approaching a fiver at the moment. I'm sure it wasn't in the 1970's when crude cost more and $100 was more valuablt then...

What gives?

mustrum_ridcully

The $100 figure you use is inflation adjusted, in other words that is how much it would cost in todays money. In 197x it would of been around $30 a barrel (unadjusted).

The all-time inflation-adjusted high for oil was $101 during April of 1980.

According to the table here: http://www.speedlimit.org.uk/petrolprices.html prices once you adjust for inflation are pretty much the same as they were back in 1983 (when the table starts).

You'll notice newpapers/media organisations rarely seem give the inflation adjusted for petrol prices as it doesn't make sensationalist reading (or is too difficult for people to understand).

iolanthe07

Petrol seemed much more expensive back in the early 70's. I remember I could just get three gallons for a pound in 1972, but as a proportion of my take home pay (£17 a week) that was a lot more than the equivalent today (about £13.35 at £1 a litre).

mustrum_ridcully

iolanthe07 - I think you're very right, the inflation adjusted figures only take into account inflation not household income.

aardvaak

I can remember in 1972 a gallon on petrol costing 34p

redux

In 1974 it went up from 37 pence to 73 pence a gallon