Christmas-week fuel rollback cuts prices by as much as P1.60

MANILA, Philippines, December 23 ------ December offers some respite from rising fuel costs, with oil firms set to roll back prices by up to P1.60 per liter starting today — just in time for the holiday break.

After climbing by a cumulative P1.60 over three weeks, gasoline prices will be cut by P0.80 per liter, reversing half of the earlier hike. Diesel and kerosene, meanwhile, have been on a downward trend over the same period following steep increases in November. Kerosene prices will be reduced by P1.60 per liter, while diesel will drop by P1.30 per liter. Shell Pilipinas, Seaoil, Cleanfuel and PetroGazz announced the downward price adjustments on Monday, December 22.

The Department of Energy's Oil Industry Management Bureau (DOE-OIMB) attributed the rollback to increased oil production, weak consumer demand and positive market sentiment surrounding a potential Russia-Ukraine ceasefire. Last week, oil prices slipped below $60 per barrel amid prospects of a working peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, raising expectations that sanctions on Russia’s major refineries could ease and global supply flows normalize.

Gasoline prices rose by P0.20 per liter during the same period, while diesel and kerosene prices each fell by P0.20 per liter. Based on DOE's monitoring, the prevailing fuel prices at Metro Manila pump stations from December 16 to December 22 are:

- Gasoline (RON97/100) - P66.84

- Gasoline (RON95) - P59.20

- Gasoline (RON91) - P55.70

- Diesel - P53.30

- Diesel Plus - P66.40

- Kerosene - P79.47

This week’s price rollback brought the year-to-date hikes for diesel and kerosene back to their October levels of P20.25 and P4.95 per liter, respectively. Gasoline, however, still carries a net increase of P20.50 per liter.

Source: philstar.com