Andreas Mundt, the President of the German Federal Cartel Office, has expressed his support for the announcement made by Federal Minister of Economics, Katherina Reiche, regarding the regulation of fuel price changes at gas stations. He highlighted that the current situation, where gas stations can change prices up to 50 times a day, undermines effective price comparison for consumers and contradicts the original intent of market transparency.

Mundt pointed out the ongoing geopolitical tensions and their impact on oil prices, particularly in relation to the crisis in Iran. He noted that while diesel prices have sustainably decoupled from crude oil prices at the wholesale level, gasoline prices have not shown the same trend. He emphasized the need for the pricing strategies of the industry to remain understandable for consumers amidst these fluctuations.

Furthermore, he raised concerns about the delayed transmission of price reductions compared to price increases, which raises questions about market fairness. The Federal Cartel Office is currently in discussions with oil companies regarding these issues. Additionally, they are collaborating with European competition authorities to investigate potential price discrepancies across countries.