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Undated photo of an fuel pump at a gasoline station.
STAR / File
MANILA, Philippines — The recent two-week streak of fuel price rollbacks will likely be interrupted, with prices expected to rise by as much as P1 per liter next week.
Based on the past four trading days, the Department of Energy’s Oil Industry Management Bureau (DOE-OIMB) projects a price hike of around P0.50 per liter for gasoline, and roughly P1 per liter for diesel and kerosene.
Industry experts also estimated a possible hike of P0.60 to P0.80 per liter for gasoline and P1.30 to P1.50 per liter for diesel.
DOE-OIMB Assistant Director Rodela Romero said on Friday, July 11, that the price hike can be traced to two main factors.
She said investors point to low oil production in the United States, coupled with rising demand for gasoline, as the first factor.
The second is the recent attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on cargo vessels in the Red Sea, some of which have involved Filipino seafarers.
“Ang nakita po nating kadahilanan sa mangyayaring pagtaas batay sa apat na araw una po finorecast po nila na ‘yun pong produksyon ng United States mukhang mahina o nabawasan samantalang yung mga investors nila na lumakas ang demand for gasoline sa US,” Romero told DZMM.
(Based on four days of trading, the reason we’re seeing for the upcoming price hike is, first, forecasts show that oil production in the United States appears to have weakened or declined, while investors have noted a stronger demand for gasoline in the US)
“Ang second po ‘yung pagbalik ng Houthi attack sa mga shipping vessels natin sa Red Sea,” she added. (The second reason is the renewed Houthi attacks on our shipping vessels in the Red Sea.)
The Red Sea attacks are a serious concern, Romero told DZBB, as 20% of the world’s petroleum still moves through this shipping route despite the high risk. She said even alternate routes come with dangers, from piracy to longer travel times.
Will there still be room for a smaller price hike? Romero said oil prices could drop again on Friday, as there is no single trend over the past trading days. After climbing on Wednesday, prices dipped again on Thursday.
Final adjustments will be determined after the last trading day, based on the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS), which reflects the average assessed prices of oil products.
Over the past two weeks, oil prices dropped by a total of P2.10 per liter for gasoline, P1.90 per liter for diesel and P3 per liter for kerosene.
As of July 8, the net increase for the year stood at P8.30 for gasoline, P9.95 for diesel and P1.05 for kerosene. — with reports by Brix Lelis
