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With northern countries stocking up on winter heating fuel and bad weather in the Gulf of Mexico, prices could rise in the near future.
'Consumers can enjoy a breather for now but it is unlikely to last long. For every high jump, there is a short correction period, but within no time, it will shoot up again,' said Mr Ng Weng Hoong, editor of energy news portal EnergyAsia.com
Still, drivers are relishing the second drop in petrol prices this week.
Petrol retailers lowered rates by three cents a litre yesterday. Prices have dropped 11 cents since July 9.
Though petrol rates are now at their lowest since May, prices are still about 13 cents higher than at the start of the year.
The latest adjustment brings a litre of 92-octane petrol to $2.103 a litre, 95-octane to $2.136 a litre and 98-octane to $2.210 a litre - all before discount.
Ultra-premium petrol like Shell's V-Power is $2.339 a litre while Caltex's Platinum is $2.336 a litre.
The latest fall in petrol rates followed a drop in crude prices. Light sweet crude for August delivery ended last week at US$128.88 (S$175.40) a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
A week earlier, it had hit a record US$147.27.
Prices also fell by three cents a litre at diesel pumps to hit $1.963 a litre. The fuel is still about 70 per cent more expensive than at the start of the year.
Cab companies - which mostly use diesel-run vehicles - recently introduced a 30-cent fuel surcharge in a bid to defray costs for their drivers.
The largest cab company here - ComfortDelGro - said that it was good news that diesel prices were heading downwards but added that prices were still volatile.
'It should be noted that despite the recent decline in prices, fuel prices are still trading at record highs,' said spokesman Tammy Tan.
The surcharge would be removed when diesel falls back to $1.19, which was the market price in December last year, she said.
While pump prices fell, the price of compressed natural gas (CNG) remained at $1.73 per kg as of yesterday.
CNG is used by some taxi companies and car owners who have added CNG tanks to their petrol-driven cars.
Smart Energy, which sells CNG, said it would review its rates closer to the end of the month when it gets billed by its supplier.
