ANOTHER “big time” oil-price hike started the week.
Oil companies on Monday announced a price adjustment in petroleum products effective today, May 3.
Gasoline prices will go up by P1.50 per liter, diesel price by P1.35 per liter and kerosene by P1.40 per liter
Pilipinas Shell, Seaoil Philippines, Phoenix Petroleum, Eastern Petroleum, and PTT Philippines said in separate announcements the price increase will take effect at 6 a.m. today.
“This is to reflect movement in the international petroleum market,” they said.
Other oil firms, such as Petron Corp., Total Philippines and Chevron Philippines, are expected to follow suit.
On April 26 oil companies implemented a P0.40 decrease for gasoline prices and increases of P0.55 per liter of diesel and P0.20 of kerosene.
Year-to-date total adjustment in gasoline last week reduced to net increase of P0.62 per liter, while diesel has escalated to net increase of P2.33 per liter, according to Department of Energy’s (DOE) latest data.
During the trading week of April 18 to 22, Dubai crude increased week-on-week by about $0.50 per barrel Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS) diesel increased, as well, by more than a dollar contrary to gasoline that dropped a little over $1.50 per barrel.
Philippine pump prices are based on the average prices on the MOPS. This refers to the prices of finished product, not crude. Finished products are the gasoline and diesel sold in pumping stations in the Philippines.
During a news conference on Monday afternoon, DOE Secretary Zenaida Y. Monsada cited two factors that led to the oil price increase.
“There had been hopes of production freeze by some oil producers. Also, there was a spike in petroleum demand in Vietnam,” Monsada said.
Eighteen oil-producing nations failed on April 17 to reach a deal to freeze oil production at January levels. Iran still refused to cap its production as it seeks to resume exports after years of international sanctions.
Also, influential OPEC member Saudi Arabia reportedly refused to sign the agreement, committing them to freeze output at January levels without Iran.
The DOE chief, meanwhile, appealed to manufacturers of consumer products not to jack up their prices just because oil prices went up as well. “They didn’t reduce their prices when there were incidents of oil price rollback. They should also not adjust their prices now,” said Monsada.
Bayan Muna Representative Neri Colmenares, meanwhile, questioned the latest oil price hike. “This is absurd. What is really needed now is the regulation of the oil industry to protect consumers from overpricing done by the oil firms,” he said.
Meanwhile, the price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) rose by P1.38per kilogram (kg), which is equivalent to P15.18 per 11kg cylinder.