Gasoline:
Retail gasoline prices increased 6.6 cents per litre to 189.5 in April
Retail gasoline prices in Canada remained volatile in April as the war in the Middle East remained unresolved and the Strait of Hormuz remained blocked. This major oil supply disruption has contributed to volatile crude oil prices and, in turn, to volatility in retail gasoline prices. In early April, the North American crude oil benchmark spot price reached its highest level since June 2022, while Brent, the international crude benchmark, reached its highest spot price in nearly two decades. Consequently, the average retail gasoline price in Canada reached 191.0 cents per litre in early April, the highest price since July 2022. Prices then declined more than 20 cents per litre in mid-April as crude oil prices softened, before climbing again at the month’s end to 189.5 cents per litre, 6.6 cents per litre higher than at the end of March.
There was regional variation in retail gasoline price movements in April, with some markets recording declines over the month while others posted significant gains. This was most apparent in the Prairie provinces, where prices in Manitoba, for instance, were, on average, up 20.0 cents per litre in April. Declining gasoline inventories in the U.S. Midwest in April, which fell 15.2 percent over the month, may have contributed to rising prices in this region. Overall, pump prices fell the most in April in Whitehorse, Yukon, where prices declined 10.0 cents per litre, ending the month at 187.9 cents per litre. In contrast, prices climbed 25.5 cents per litre in Lloydminster, Alberta, the steepest increase in April, reaching 182.9 cents per litre. Prices ended April at the lowest in Canada in Lethbridge, Alberta, at 165.8 cents per litre, and the highest in Vancouver, British Columbia, at 218.9 cents per litre.
Diesel:
Retail diesel prices decreased 14.6 cents per litre to 222.1 in April
Retail diesel prices in Canada also experienced substantial volatility in April. Prices peaked at 242.5 cents per litre in early April, the highest on record, then fell by more than 40 cents per litre in less than two weeks, before climbing again by more than 20 cents per litre by month’s end. Overall, retail diesel prices declined 14.6 cents per litre in April, though regional price movements varied significantly. Prices in Eastern Canada fell substantially, likely due to seasonal factors. Demand for home heating fuel, a fuel chemically similar to diesel and used predominantly in Eastern Canada, declined, leading to substantial price declines. In contrast, prices in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta rose significantly, likely reflecting rising demand for diesel fuel tied to economic growth. The Prairie provinces’ economic growth in 2026 is expected to surpass that of the rest of Canada.
Overall, the largest diesel price decline in April occurred in Labrador City, Newfoundland, where prices fell 40.2 cents per litre to end the month at 229.9 cents per litre. In Fort St. John, British Columbia, diesel prices saw the largest increase, rising 34.7 cents per litre in April to end the month at 241.9 cents per litre. Overall, diesel prices ended April at the lowest in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, at 187.5 cents per litre, and at the highest in Vancouver, British Columbia, at 248.6 cents per litre.
We conduct a daily survey of retail gasoline, diesel, propane, and furnace fuel prices in 77 Canadian cities.
Canadian petroleum prices are available for download and display using a variety of analytic tools on our website: Charting.kalibrate.com/
