Oil firms are rolling back their prices effective today after last week’s mixed adjustments.
Seaoil and Caltex reduced per liter prices by P0.45 on gasoline, P1.10 on diesel and P1.05 on kerosene.
PTT and Phoenix Petroleum also adjusted per liter prices downward by P0.45 on gasoline and P1.10 on diesel.
Today’s price rollback was attributed to the easing concerns of oil traders amid tensions in the Middle East as well as the expected pause in interest rates increases of the US Federal Reserve.
Data from the Department of Energy (DOE) as of October 31 showed Manila price per liter of gasoline (RON95) stood at P73.05, diesel at P65.27 and kerosene at P76.86.
DOE data also showed year-to-date adjustments as of October 31 stood at a total net increase of P14.20 per liter for gasoline, P10.45 per liter for diesel and P5.04 per liter for kerosene.
Reuters reported that as of Friday last week, Brent crude futures ended at $84.89 a barrel while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled at $80.51 per barrel.
The report added petroleum prices dropped amid the rising performance of the US dollar and the US Federal Reserve’s decision to keep interest rates steady while also remaining open for possible future rate hikes due to a strong economy.
Traders said further interest rate hikes can slow down economic growth and can reduce oil demand while a strong US dollar makes it more expensive to buy fuel using other currencies, creating pressure on prices.
The unexpected contraction of October factory activity in China, the world’s largest oil importer, was also a factor in this week’s petroleum price rollback.
Analysts said this week’s rollback could have been higher if not for the expected decision of Saudi Arabia to reconfirm the extension of its voluntary oil output cut of as much as 1 million barrels per day through December.