Australia fuel crisis: Panic buying prompts PM to reassure nation over fuel supply

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has sought to reassure Australians that the country's fuel supply remains "secure" as prices soar and following reports of panic buying and petrol stations running dry since the start of the Iran war. "The longer this war goes on, the greater the impact will be. But we continue to act to prepare and shield Australians from the worst of it," Albanese told reporters on Friday. There have been reports of truck drivers and other motorists stranded, while businesses say rising costs are affecting their viability. The government says demand and distribution issues have caused shortages rather than supply, which it says remains at the same level as before the war began. "For the next few weeks, Australia's supply of petrol and diesel and oil will be the same, if not higher, than it normally would be," Energy Minister Chris Bowen said alongside Albanese. In Cairns, Queensland, the BBC found a small independent garage that tells a pretty typical story in Australia. It has run out of unleaded petrol and the price of diesel is 85% higher than it was before the war in Iran started. In New South Wales, Australia's most populous state, one in seven retailers say t