P3.01/liter diesel price cut seen; gas up by P1.56/liter

MANILA, Philippines, October 13 ------ Motorists are getting their third consecutive diesel price rollback today, even as gasoline and kerosene prices rise again.

The Department of Energy (DOE) prescribed maximum price hikes of P1.56 and P1.77 per liter for gasoline and kerosene, respectively, while diesel prices will go down by at least P3.01 per liter. Rino Abad, director of the DOE’s Oil Industry Management Bureau, told reporters yesterday that gasoline and kerosene prices rose due to supply tightness.

The latest adjustments mark the second consecutive week of increases for the two refined petroleum products. Diesel prices, meanwhile, continued to decline following an agreement among Group of Seven (G7) countries to release 100 million barrels of petroleum supplies, with diesel among the priorities.

The G7 comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. Abad also cited a recent agreement between Washington and Moscow for the supply of Russian diesel fuel to the United States and global markets in a bid to bring down prices. “These developments will ease the global diesel shortage. We expect that in the coming weeks, once these releases are carried out, the pressure on diesel prices will ease,” Abad said.

Back home, Energy Undersecretary Alessandro Sales said the country had enough fuel supplies to last 51.39 days as of Oct. 9. The Japan International Cooperation Agency, meanwhile, has expressed support for the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Petroleum Security, particularly the establishment of an oil stockpiling system in the Philippines. JICA is committed to providing expert exchanges, technical training and data-gathering support to help the region develop robust emergency fuel response protocols.

Source: philstar.com