AFP FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Oil firms are rolling back oil prices, citing downward adjustments in international prices.
Petron, Shell and Seaoil announced a rollback of P0.30 per liter for gasoline, P0.65 per liter for diesel, and P0.70 per liter for kerosene, effective 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, March 18.
Independent oil player Phoenix Petroleum Philippines will decrease the prices of diesel by P0.65 per liter and of gasoline by P0.30 per liter effective 6 a.m. on March 18, according to its officials.
PTT Philippines will implement a rollback of P0.65 per liter for diesel and P0.30 per liter for gasoline effective 12:01 a.m. on March 18, its officials have said.
Eastern Petroleum has a slightly bigger price cut for customers. The company said in an advisory it would trim gasoline prices by P0.35 per liter and diesel prices by P0.70 per liter, also starting 12:01 a.m. on March 18.
The rollback reflected the softening prices of refined petroleum products in the international market, the companies said.
Other oil firms have not made official announcements but are expected to do so as well. Fuel products retailing in the Philippines are mostly imported. Oil firms thus tend to track each others prices.
Year-to-date, there is a net decrease of P0.05 per liter at most in gasoline prices while diesel will have had a net decrease of P1.35 per liter this week from March 18 onwards.
Oil prices dropped internationally, particularly in the U.S., towards the end of last week’s trading as the U.S. announced a so-called test sale of crude oil from its emergency stockpile onto the market.
With enough supply in the U.S — among the biggest oil guzzling economies besides China — prices softened internationally as trader sentiment turned dim amid “too much inventory,” analysts said.