Gasoline, diesel, kerosene prices up during Holy Week

AP FILE PHOTO

OIL firms are increasing pump prices this week as traders turn to storage amid analyst predictions that the US oil supply glut will not last long.

Seaoil and other oil firms have announced that they will raise prices of gasoline (by P1.10 per liter), diesel (P0.60 per liter), and kerosene (P0.80 per liter) this week.

Eastern Petroleum and Phoenix Petroleum said they would implement similar price hikes for gasoline and diesel this week. Both do not carry kerosene products.

The price adjustment for most oil firms is at 12:01 a.m., Tuesday, March 31. However, Phoenix Petroleum is starting the adjustment a little later at 6 a.m.

Other firms have not made official announcements but are expected to implement similar changes since most of the fuel sold in the Philippines is imported and thus vulnerable to the same set of price factors.

With this week’s adjustments, gasoline prices will have had a net increase of P1.37 per liter while diesel prices have had a net decrease of P1 per liter since January 2015.

Industry players said it seemed like “a normal trading upswing” as industry analysts said expectations of a lingering supply glut in the
US have been “exaggerated.”

“It’s a smaller reversal than last week’s rollback” Eastern Petroleum president Fer Martinez said in a text message.

Last week, oil firms announced downward price adjustments of P1.10 per liter for gasoline, P0.95 per liter for diesel, and P0.90 per liter for kerosene.

Oil prices dropped dramatically in the second half of 2014 following mixed price signals in the first half.

Come early 2015, oil market analysts predicted continuing overall weakness in demand but also noted the rise in demand for oil storage as many firms sought to take advantage of the low oil prices to turn a profit when prices climb. SFM/AC