STUCK in a traffic jam on the road home after an Easter break, the motorist has time to ponder many things. One may be the pain felt filling up the car for the return journey. Petrol prices have risen as the oil price has increased. But the driver's pain at the pump differs across countries, dependent in part on the proportion of the cost that is paid in taxes. Turks have the most reason to feel aggrieved, closely followed by the British. Americans still enjoy relatively cheap fuel—they pay far less in tax than drivers elsewhere.

AFP