PETROL prices at some filling stations in York have risen for the fifth time since the beginning of the year.

A litre of unleaded now costs 88.9 pence at several filling stations across the city, including Morrisons in Foss Islands Road, where it cost only 82.9 pence in early January.

But a litre of diesel has fallen to 97.9 pence, compared with 98.9p earlier this month.

The petrol price rises come after sustained reductions last autumn which gave motorists a major boost after having been badly hit by record price rises earlier in the year, up to £1.20 a litre last summer.

An Asda spokeswoman said the price of unleaded petrol at its Monks Cross store was now 88.9p per litre, but claimed that the last time the price had moved was in the New Year.

She said the rise was due to costs rising as crude oil prices went up. “As always, we’re committed to giving our customers the best possible price at the pumps and as soon as our costs fall, we’re the first to move prices down and pass on the saving to our customers.”

A Morrison’s spokeswoman said: “Whilst our petrol prices remain competitive, they must reflect activity in the market place.

“If wholesale price of the refined product increases then our retail prices will follow this. If the cost of the refined product falls, we pass the benefit onto our customers as soon as possible.”

An AA spokesman said that prices at the pumps had been rising even though the international price of a crude oil had remained depressed in the face of the worldwide recession, in the low $40s per barrel.

An AA spokesman said that prices had risen nationally by several pence over the last few weeks to a UK average of 90.76 pence a litre of unleaded.

He said the main reason for the increase was that UK refineries had been operating at a loss at times last year and were seeking to restore their margins.

He said that in recent days, prices nationwide had fallen slightly, albeit with marked regional variations, and he anticipated that they would stabilise or fall slightly again in the next few weeks.

He said the recession meant it was unlikely that demand for crude oil would surge and push up prices again, despite efforts by Opec to restrict production.

However, one key factor was what happened when the “driving season” started again, particularly in America, where it traditionally pushed up prices.

It was uncertain whether the recession would depress this feature this year.