Local retailers have implemented mixed adjustments on the price of petroleum products after last week’s rollback.
Seaoil and Caltex increased per liter prices by P0.50 on gasoline but reduced diesel by P0.40 and kerosene by P0.35.
Clean Fuel, Jetti and PTT adjusted per liter prices upward by P0.50 of gasoline but cut diesel by P0.40.
Today’s price movements were mainly a result of traders’ anticipation of what will be the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC) decision on oil production cuts for the second quarter of the year.
Data from the Department of Energy (DOE) as of February 27 showed Manila price per liter of gasoline (RON95) stood at P66.55, diesel at P61.70 and kerosene at P73.84.
DOE data also showed year-to-date adjustments as of the same date stood at a total net increase of P5.45 per liter for gasoline, P4.45 per liter for diesel and P0.40 per liter for kerosene.
Reuters reported that as of Friday last week, Brent futures for May settled at $83.55 a barrel while for April Brent futures contract that expired on February 29 ended at $83.62 a barrel. Meanwhile, US West Texas Intermediate for April was at $79.97 per barrel.
Analysts said in the report if OPEC would stick to the voluntary production cuts until the end of the year, it would serve as a strong signal for crude prices to go up.
Traders added the continued tensions in the Red Sea which affect normal shipping routes also provide an upward pressure on global crude prices.
However, traders said that the fifth straight month of decreasing manufacturing activity in China is pulling down the cost of crude oil as it indicates lower demand from the world’s biggest fuel importer. -Jed Macapagal