Phoenix Petroleum cuts diesel, gas prices

Phoenix Petroleum Philippines on Saturday slashed pump prices by P1.70 a liter for diesel and 90 centavos a liter for gasoline, as crude oil traders resume worries about weak demand and oversupply.

If other local oil companies followed suit and implemented the same price reductions, pump prices would be lower than their end-2019 levels—not counting the third tranche of tax hikes that took effect last Jan. 1.

Starting this year, taxes on diesel rose by P1.68 a liter, including P1.50 in excise and 18 centavos in value-added tax (VAT). This was P1.12 for gasoline, including P1 in excise and 12 centavos in VAT.

As fears of a war between the United States and Iran dissipated, the price of the Asian benchmark Dubai Crude tumbled from $63.36 per barrel on Monday to $61.99 as of last Thursday.

Dubai has been sliding from a high of $67.45 per barrel, which was a result of the market reacting to a Washington-sanctioned drone attack that killed an Iranian general and prompted a retaliatory attack by Tehran. ­­­‍—RONNEL W. DOMINGO