Sunday, June 29, 2008 Gas prices hit P60 per liter, with no relief in sight
PUMP prices of petroleum products hit P60 per liter with the latest round of increases implemented by oil companies early yesterday morning.
It was the fourth increase in June alone and the 17th so far this year.
Major oil companies Petron Corp., Chevron Philippines and Pilipinas Shell, as well as Total Philippines, imposed a P1.50 per liter increase in the prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene, starting 6 a.m. yesterday.
Total said that aside from diesel, gasoline and kerosene, they are also imposing a P1 per liter increase in their auto-liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
Petron explained that the new increase “is to reflect the continuing rise in the international crude prices.”
This year alone, the price of unleaded gasoline has climbed by an average of P15 a liter. An 11-kilogram cylinder of cooking gas that cost P594 to P650 in late January sold for P600 to P671 last week.
For June, Dubai crude averaged US$127.39 per barrel, higher by US$7.89 than last month’s average price of US$119.50.
“Dubai reach an all-time high, hitting US$135.08 per barrel,” added Petron’s public affairs chief Raffy Ledesma.
Oil futures climbed to a new record near $143 a barrel Friday as the dollar weakened against the euro, confirming expectations that the falling greenback, a major factor in crude’s stratospheric rise, will extend its decline and add to oil’s appeal.
Oil has more than doubled in the past year due to the dollar’s decline, but also because of rising global demand, particularly in fast-growing economies such as China and India. Supply outages in the Middle East and Nigeria have also contributed, as has falling production in Mexico.
The sharp increase in oil prices has driven a similar rise in US fuel prices. Gas prices are $1.09 a gallon (28 cents a liter) higher than a year ago, and diesel prices were up $1.85 (49 cents a liter) over the past year at a national average of $4.763 a gallon ($1.25 a liter) on Friday. (Sunnex/AFP)
