Consumers can expect fuel prices to rise next week by more than P1 per liter for diesel and less than P1 per liter for gasoline and kerosene.
The Department of Energy said this forecast is based on the oil price movement for a four-day trading period.
“Yes, there will be an increase in the prices of petroleum products on Tuesday, Feb. 21,” DOE Oil Industry Management Bureau director Rodela Romero said.
An industry source told the Standard diesel will likely go up by P1 to P1.10 per liter and gasoline by P0.85 to P0.95 per liter effective Tuesday.
Romero said the increase was “primarily due to the plan of Russia to cut their crude production and the IEA (International Energy Agency) announcement that the world oil demand is predicted to rise by two million barrels per day in 2023.”
“One contributory factor is the increase in demand of China as a result of the lifting of their Zero COVID policy,” Romero said.
China is one of the world’s biggest consumers of oil products.
On February 7, the oil companies rolled back pump prices by P2.10 per liter for gasoline, P3 per liter for diesel, and P2.30 per liter for kerosene.
These resulted in a total net increase this year to stand at P5.10 perliter for gasoline, P0.05 per liter for diesel, and P2.25 per liter for kerosene.
Domestic pump prices are adjusted weekly, and prices of petroleum products vary depending on the brand, location, and market forces.
The Philippines imports more than 90 percent of its fuel requirements.