It is always quite striking just how greatly the overseers of the economy defend the status quo in order to ensure company profits keep rising.

Right now, Australians are suffering from a cost-of-living crisis.

It’s pretty obvious why this is happening.

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But we too often default to the view that oil prices are rising, so petrol prices must also rise and nothing can be done about it. We are so locked into believing that the market must not be questioned that we just assume everything is happening as it should.

Well this week Ampol released its third-quarter report to the ASX. It noted that the growth in its operating profits “reflects the strength of the integrated supply chain to capture the benefits from prevailing market conditions”.

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It also reported that the “escalation of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East in recent weeks and ongoing constraints in supply of fuel products … continue to be net favourable for Ampol’s integrated supply chain”.

Yep, “net favourable”.

This isn’t about them selling more fuel. It’s about them increasing margins at Ampol’s Lytton refinery. Ampol noted that the margin in the third quarter of US$23.92 was more than double what it was a year........

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