As petrol hits £1.66 in some parts of Suffolk, experts have said the soaring cost of living is linked to the war in Ukraine.

Financial experts have warned that “at some point soon consumers will not be able to cope with even higher prices” as the conflict in Ukraine stokes inflation further.

At a Shell garage in the small east Suffolk village of Stratford St Andrew, a litre of unleaded was 166.9p. Nobody from the garage was available to speak about the price.

And prices are continuing to rise.

Data from Experian Catalist said the average cost of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts reached a new high of 153.50p on Thursday, up from 152.20p on Wednesday.

The RAC has urged for support from the Treasury as the figures also showed that the cost of diesel rose from 155.79p to a record 157.47p over the same period.

Oil prices have spiked due to concerns over the reliability of supplies since Russian troops invaded Ukraine last week.

This is pinching on Suffolk business's bottom lines.

Rob Kersey, owner and director of Felixstowe-based haulage company KDR European, said: “It’s been happening for a long time – throughout last year and coming into the beginning of this year the fuel prices have obviously been pushing the transport costs up.”

Roly Hollings, managing director Bury St Edmunds-based A&R Group, another haulage firm, said he had seen fuel bills spike as soon as the conflict started.

“For us as a business, we were spending £50,000 a week on fuel and straightaway last week the cost of crude oil went up by $9 a barrel and straightaway that meant an extra penny-and-a-half per litre on our fuel bill per vehicle,” he said.

It comes after the Consumer Price Index (CPI) reached 5.5% in January, although it is expected to accelerate once again.

Many other price rises have been linked to the war in Ukraine.

Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said inflation could yet rise above 8% if the invasion of Ukraine drives surges in commodity prices.

The price of wheat, one of Ukraine’s largest export products, hit a 14-year high last week, putting pressure on the cost of everyday food products such as bread.

Packaging prices have also lifted on the back of a surge in the cost of aluminium, as a significant amount is sourced from Russia.