After four consecutive weeks of hikes, oil price movements are mixed after global crude went up due to hopes the trade deal between the United States and China would remain intact.
According to the Department of Energy (DOE), the latest average Manila price per liter of gasoline (RON95) is at P43.27, diesel at P31.98 and kerosene at P33.39.
Shell and Seaoil adjusted the per liter price of gasoline downward by P0.20; diesel and kerosene moved upward by P0.25 and P0.80, respectively.
Phoenix Petroleum and PTT cut the cost of gasoline by P0.20 per liter but increased the price of diesel by P0.25 per liter.
The adjustments reflect the effects of global pricing and do take into account the additional costs from the 10-percent import duties imposed on imported fuel.
As of May 27, year-to-date adjustments led to net decreases of P9.52 per liter for gasoline, P12.44 per liter for diesel and P16.24 per liter for kerosene.
Reuters reported that as of Friday last week, West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled at $35.49 a barrel, up by 5.3 percent while Brent crude closed at $35.33 a barrel.
Both benchmarks experienced an improvement due to falling global production paired with expectations for demand growth as parts of the US, including New York City and other countries decided to re-open after coronavirus-related lockdowns.
Likewise, experts noted that US President Donald Trump’s statement that his administration will begin to eliminate special treatment for Hong Kong in response to China’s plans to impose new security legislation in the territory also supported prices as it is expected to favor the trade deal between the two nations.
Oil prices were also supported by a record-low number of American and Canadian oil and gas rigs, which indicates a further drop in supply out of the world’s biggest crude producer. US oil and gas rig count fell by 17 to an all-time low of 301
