TOKYO, July 9: Japan’s average petrol price at the pump has hit a record high of 181.50 yen ($1.68) per litre due to surges in global crude oil prices, an industry group said on Wednesday.

The nationwide average retail price of regular petrol as of Monday was up 5.5 per cent or 9.5 yen from a week earlier, the Oil Information Centre said in its weekly survey.

Japan has almost no natural energy resources and relies heavily on imports of crude oil to power its economy, the second largest in the world.

Rising crude prices forced Japanese oil wholesalers to raise petrol prices in concert by nearly 10 yen on July 1.

—AFP