Australia news live: Chris Bowen says petrol reserves won’t ease shortages straight away; RBA tipped to hike rates

<p>Energy minister says it will take ‘some time’ for extra supply to reach regional areas. Follow today’s news live</p><ul><li><p>Get our <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters?CMP=cvau_sfl">breaking news email</a>, <a href="https://app.adjust.com/w4u7jx3">free app</a> or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/series/full-story?CMP=cvau_sfl">daily news podcast</a></p></li></ul><p>The energy minister, <strong>Chris Bowen</strong>, says it will take “some time” for the petrol and disesel released from Australia’s domestic stockpile to reach areas hit by shortages.</p><p>On Friday, the Albanese government directed fuel companies to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/mar/13/australia-to-release-nearly-20-of-fuel-stockpile-as-bowen-insists-country-nowhere-near-running-out">release nearly a fifth of reserve petrol and diesel supplies</a>. Dozens of service stations across the country have<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/mar/16/dozens-of-australian-petrol-stations-run-out-of-fuel-as-panic-buying-continues"> run out of petrol</a> as retailers struggle with customers panic-buying in response to skyrocketing prices from the Middle East conflict.</p><p>There will be some time for it to flow through. There’s a very complicated supply chain.</p><p>But it is going to have an impact. Some companies have said it will start to have an impact in coming days, to some degree. <strong>But there will be some time before it’s all released</strong>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2026/mar/17/bowen-rba-interest-rates-decision-cost-of-living-inflation-fuel-price-shortages-petrol-jim-chalmers-economy-war-iran-anthony-albanese-ntwnfb">Continue reading...</a>

Read the full article at: The Guardian World →