Kerosene prices are expected to take the biggest cut at P1.50 to P1.80 per liter this week as local oil firms are poised for another round of rollbacks in pump prices by Tuesday, industry sources told the Standard.
Cooking gas prices are projected to dip by the end of the month, as interest rates in the United States were raised, Department of Energy Assistant Director Rodela Romero said.
She said diesel prices are estimated to roll back from P1.30 to P1.60 per liter, while gasoline would take the smallest cut, from P0.80 to P1 per liter.
“This is because the US came out with a new interest rate hike to its monetary policy to address inflation. Second, the US was seen to have a big build-up to its crude inventory,” Romero said.
Energy Director Rino Abad attributed the price drops to higher inventories in the United States and Russia’s plans to cut oil production.
“The rise in the US inventory saw a drop in demand to controlinflation, and the US isn’t letting go of its interest hike policy,” Abad said in a Teleradyo interview on Saturday.
Earlier, domestic pump prices were seen to go down by as much as P1.70 per liter next week to reflect the movement of prices in the world oil market.
An industry source told the Standard the forecast of an oil pricerollback is based on the indicative movement of pump prices computed based on four-day trading and foreign exchange movement.
Reuters reported on Thursday that oil prices went up due to expectations of Russian production cuts beginning next month but higher US inventories also affected the movement of prices.
Despite optimism over China’s economic reopening which boosted oil prices, US inflation fears which could affect demand also tempered the upward movement of oil prices, reports said.
On February 21, oil firms raised the price of diesel by P1.05 perliter and P0.90 per liter for gasoline but cut the price of kerosene by P0.25 per liter.
World prices have seesawed in recent weeks due to market volatilities arising from the US-Ukraine war and demand forecasts from the US and China, the world’s biggest oil consumers. With Alena Mae Flores
