Oil firms set price hike whopper: P2.30 per liter of diesel

Pump prices could go up this week by as much as P2.30 per liter effective Tuesday to reflect the movement of oil prices in the world market.

“Expect fuel prices to go up next week (May 26 to June 1). Diesel should increase by more than P2.30 per liter. Gasoline should increase by more than P1.90 per liter,” Unioil Philippines said in its weekly price forecast.

READ: COVID-19 stalls PH, China oil negotiations

The latest oil price hike does not include the impact of the additional 10 percent duty on all crude petroleum oil and refined petroleum products under Executive Order 113 to help bolster government revenues to fight COVID-19.

Data provided by the department showed that the additional 10 percent tariff will result in an increase of P0.60 per liter for gasoline, P0.84 per liter for diesel, and P0.55 per liter for kerosene.

World oil prices have been going up in recent weeks as oil supply is being reduced amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Optimism on demand-side due to many countries reopening also pushed global oil prices upward.

On May 19, oil companies raised the prices of petroleum products by P1.25 per liter for gasoline, P0.55 per liter for diesel, and P2.35 to P2.40 per liter for kerosene.

READ: Oil prices extend falls on storage concerns

On May 12, the oil firms also raised the price of gasoline by P2 liter for gasoline, P1.90 per liter for diesel, and P1.25 per liter for kerosene.

Total year-to-date adjustments show a net decrease of P11.27 per liter for gasoline, P14.54 per liter for diesel, and P18.88 per liter for kerosene, according to the Energy Department.

The country’s petroleum demand reached 171.817 million barrels last year, an increase of 1.8 percent from 168.805 million barrels in 2018.

READ: The trader who called the 2020 oil crisis

This translates to an average daily requirement of 470.7 thousand barrels compared to 462.5 thousand barrels per day in 2018, department data showed.