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UAE petrol prices are set to rise in August for a second straight month, as the global oil market continues be extremely volatile amid renewed tensions between the US and Iran.
Super 98 will increase by 5.88 per cent, Special 95 by 6.08 per cent, E-Plus 91 by 6.23 per cent and diesel by 5.56 per cent.
Prices at the pump fell for the first time in five months in July, after Washington and Tehran agreed to a ceasefire. Crude erased all of its wartime gains in the first week of this month.
However, they quickly shot back up as both sides renewed hostilities. Yemen's Houthi rebels also got involved by imposing a "maritime embargo" on Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea last week, causing Brent to top $100 a barrel for the first time since the end of May.
The unpredictable situation has caused global oil prices to swing back and forth, making it difficult to predict market trends moving forward.
Analysts have noted that the impact of global crude price movements on retail fuel costs can be delayed due to a number of factors, including inventories that have been priced in and other logistical challenges.
How much will fuel cost in August?
Super 98: Dh3.60, up 5.88 per cent from Dh3.40 in July
Special 95: Dh3.49, up 6.08 per cent from from Dh3.29
E-Plus 91: Dh3.41, up 6.23 per cent from Dh3.21
Diesel: Dh3.80, up 5.56 per cent from Dh3.60
The cost of fuel in the UAE has been tied to the global oil market since 2015, when deregulation was introduced.
At the close of the market on Thursday, Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world's oil, settled 1.88 per cent lower to $89.03 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, declined 1.03 per cent to $83.59 per barrel.
"The oil and gas industry came into 2026 bracing for a difficult year. What it got was a price surge, an unplanned cash windfall and a set of strategic pressures that, if anything, have grown more urgent," analysts at UK research firm Wood Mackenzie said.
Analysts have also cautioned that oil prices at elevated levels for an extended period could have a significant impact on the global economy with inflation rising, and food and transport becoming costlier.
The situation is "not a natural commodity cycle" and the price surge "reflects geopolitical conflict, not underlying demand, and companies are well aware of it", Wood Mackenzie upstream analysis lead Fraser McKay added.
