In 2020, the average base price (to include winter bonuses) across all processors was 25.66p/l, a marginal drop on the 25.8p/l recorded for the previous year.

At the start of 2020, base price averaged 25.9p/l, but as COVID-19 hit global markets, by April this average had slipped back to 23.15p/l. Since then, there has been a steady recovery and in December, with winter bonuses included, base prices across all processors averaged 28.66p/l. This is the highest monthly average since January 2018.

Annual comparison

However, when we look at annual averages, the 2020 figure is actually the lowest recorded in NI since 2016.

In the intervening period, the 2017 figure comes in at 27.79p/l and the 2018 equivalent is 27.53p/l.

But in general, it has been four years of relatively stable prices, which is probably much preferable to the ‘boom and bust’ scenario seen in previous years.

In 2016, prices were in the doldrums, and base prices across all NI processors averaged 20.11p/l. That was only marginally ahead of the 19.95p/l average from 2015.

Record highs

Two years previously, base prices in NI had reached a record high, with the 2013 average across all processors at 31.27p/l.

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