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Diesel Hits €2.50 a Liter in Germany as Noon Price Rule Backfires

Berlin faces pressure to match EU neighbors that cap prices or cut fuel taxes.

Overview

  • ADAC data recorded Tuesday just after the mandated noon reset showed diesel at €2.502 per liter nationwide, with Super E10 jumping to €2.235 as the seventh straight midday record was set.
  • Since the April 1 rule limiting stations to one daily increase at 12:00, average prices have climbed rather than eased, with diesel up 12.7 cents and E10 up 8.5 cents versus March 31.
  • The surge tracks a broader supply shock from the Iran war and Strait of Hormuz disruptions, with Brent crude around $111 a barrel and diesel hit harder because Germany imports much of it and industry relies on it.
  • A cross‑party taskforce is assessing options for Friday, including flexible price caps tied to oil markets, targeted tax relief, and reviving an EU windfall‑profits tool to fund aid.
  • The Bundeskartellamt has ordered oil firms to justify price hikes and can probe margins more quickly, while political leaders split over remedies as some push a commuter‑tax break and others warn the state cannot fully offset the shock.