CALTEX petrol stations raised their pump prices on Tuesday, a move seen as a precursor to hikes at other fuel outlets.

The increase - three cents a litre for petrol and five cents for diesel - was the third since last month and the ninth consecutive climb since July last year.

It brings a litre of petrol to as high as $2.316 and diesel to $1.663 a litre before discounts. Caltex is operated by United States oil giant Chevron. Other oil companies with petrol stations here - namely Shell, ExxonMobil and Singapore Petroleum Company - are expected to follow Chevron's move in the next few days.

If they do, a three-cent hike in petrol prices will cost Singapore drivers a total of $27.5 million a year.

Petrol prices have risen by more than 55 cents a litre since the beginning of last year. Drivers here have seen their fuel bill inflate by more than $500 million in just over a year - or an average of just under $1,000 per car owner.

The pump adjustment came swiftly on the back of record crude oil prices, which crossed US$117 (S$157) per barrel on Monday, before dipping to around US$115 on Tuesday. It was averaging US$50 a barrel in January last year.

Monday's rise in crude prices has been blamed on fears of supply disruptions. A Japanese oil tanker was reportedly attacked off Yemen and pipelines in Nigeria have been bombed repeatedly by a rebel group there. Observers foresee oil prices breaching US$120 in the next few weeks.

Singapore residents are not the only ones affected. In the US, the world's biggest fuel consumer, petrol is now averaging 77 US cents a litre and diesel 92 US cents a litre. Both are record rates.

In Britain, the average price of a litre of petrol now stands at 1.08 euro (S$2.80). Diesel set another record of 1.18 euro a litre.