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Australian fuel prices have returned to levels not seen since the start of the Iran war four months ago, providing motorists with much-needed relief as sharp declines in global oil costs continue to flow into local service stations.

New price data reveals average unleaded petrol prices in Sydney and Melbourne have fallen below $1.56 per litre, while diesel has fallen below $1.78 per litre. That means fuel is the cheapest it has been since late February, when Iran began blocking crude oil tankers from leaving the Persian Gulf, causing huge increases in the cost of fuel and triggering a global energy crisis.

At today’s prices, gasoline and diesel are nearly 40 percent cheaper than they were at the height of the conflict, when unleaded fuel reached a record national average of $2.53 per liter and diesel rose to $3.19.

Prices began to ease following a preliminary ceasefire and progress toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a vital maritime choke point off Iran’s southern coast that handles 20 percent of global oil trade.

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