Petrol Prices in New Zealand are reaching all-time highs.  Experts say that very soon, the price of premium at the pump will reach the psychological $2 per litre mark.

I’ve been giving some thought to how this affects the average person, and the type of financial ramifications further rises in petrol prices would have.

Why?  Simply because all evidence suggests that petrol prices will continue to rise globally. 

Maybe even to the point where in some countries it will be considered a luxury to drive due to extremely high fuel costs.

Rising fuel costs are nothing new, we hear about them all the time in the media, but usually this is reported from a cost to companies or business perspective.

I started think about this from a local level and how a $2 per litre fuel cost would affect the average person..

So here’s a few numbers ( and assumptions) to think about:

Here in NZ, one third of our population (roughly) lives in Auckland. 

The average Gross Weekly Income is $667.  Which means if we assume an average tax rate of 25% means the indivdual gets around $500 in the hand for working roughly 5 days per week.

Now if the average person drives to work (only got to see our motorways to prove this), with an average car that takes 60 litres of fuel which is consumed on a weekly basis, then:

The average person  in Auckland who takes home $500 per week is spending around $100 -$120 on fuel costs.

This theory could easily be supported by the statistics showing Auckland, New Zealand is one of the least affordable places to live of the major cities in the world!