You may have noticed unleaded fuel prices in South East Queensland jump all over the place. One day they’re down and the next minute they’re up.

In August, unleaded petrol (ULP) prices at sites across Brisbane soared to an unprecedented 229.9 cents per litre (cpl).

This hike exceeded the previous record set in June 2022 of 224cpl for ULP.

RACQ’s quarterly fuel reports consistently show Brisbane has the highest fuel prices of the five major capital cities.

It may be hard to believe but there is some method to the madness and it even has a name – a fuel price cycle, and when you look closely prices follow a fairly regular pattern.

It’s believed South East Queensland’s fuel price cycle began back in the 1970s, when everyone was paid in cash on a Thursday and would immediately fill up the tank.

By the time Tuesday came around and the pay packet had dwindled, no one was filling up – so service stations introduced what we came to know as ‘Cheap Tuesday” which fuelled the beginning of the fuel price cycle.

Watch the video below to learn all about how the cycle works.