Diesel price drop, new hike in gas prices, complementary pension increases, handling fees for small parcels… Everything that changes on November 1

Many changes are taking place in the daily lives of the French on November 1, particularly with the price of gas which is rising and that of diesel which is expected to fall. Other good news for consumers' wallets is that private supplementary pensions will be upgraded. • New increase in the price of gas After an increase of 5.6% on September 1, then 6.3% on October 1, the benchmark gas sales price will increase by 6.6% on November 1, to 194.90 euros including tax per megawatt hour on average.

The Energy Regulatory Commission indicates that of the three parts which make up the benchmark gas sales price - transport, taxes and supply - only the latter changes on November 1st. This is a “consequence of an increase in prices on the gas markets in September compared to August”. "The CRE assesses the impact on invoices at 12 euros including tax on average in November for consumers whose offers are indexed to the PRVG.

" "Provided that the situation remains more or less stable between now and the end of the year", the energy policeman also estimates that the annual gas bill could be on average 11% higher in 2026 than in 2025, i.e. an average increase of around 135 euros including tax. This increase concerns the approximately 6 million households having subscribed to a supplier offer indexed to this average price, which varies every month, i.e. around 60% of residential gas subscribers Households who have subscribed to a fixed price offer (around 40% of residential gas consumers at the end of 2025) will not be affected by this increase.

• Cheaper diesel? It is from this Sunday that the release of 10 million barrels of diesel from strategic stocks should have an effect on the prices displayed at service stations. The expected drop in the price at the pump could range from 12 to 18 cents per liter, according to the government, which would represent “around ten euros of savings with each fill-up on average”.

The operation is made possible by the use of France's strategic stocks, purchased before the war in the Middle East at 0.28 euros per liter, significantly less than the current market price of around 1.10 euros per liter, according to Matignon. For the 300 most isolated rural service stations, which risk being delivered later, the government has provided "cash advances" and "a specialized fund", so that they can anticipate purchases of discounted fuels and lower their prices from November 1. The planned price reduction also concerns non-road diesel (NGR) used by farmers, fishermen, construction and public works companies, as well as domestic fuel oil.

To ensure the success of the operation, the government intends to be transparent. The volumes released by Sagess, which manages strategic stocks for the State, will be published every week, as will the reduction in costs resulting from destocking. The government also undertakes to control the “prices and margins” of distributors.

Machine-translated from French