The Department of Energy (DOE) announced on Monday that gasoline prices per liter could either fall by as much as P1 or rise by up to P1 this week, while diesel and kerosene rates will definitely see increases. Diesel is expected to go up by P2.62 to P4.62 per liter, and kerosene by P2.22 to P4.22 per liter. Last week, gasoline could have dropped by up to P1.75 or increased by a maximum of P0.25, while diesel and kerosene were permitted rollbacks ranging from P1.57 to P3.57 and P1.70 to P3.70 respectively. As of today, only Seaoil has released its official price adjustments, taking effect at 6 a.m. on July 14: gasoline will rise by P1 per liter, diesel by P4.60, and kerosene by P2.30 across the board.
Energy Secretary Sharon Garin attributed the price movements to renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, noting that ongoing threats to navigation in the Strait of Hormuz have raised concerns over one of the world’s key energy shipping routes, pushing up international crude costs and passing through to local pump prices. She added that if market conditions remain unstable, the DOE may change how it announces price adjustments next week, replacing the current range format with fixed maximum or minimum amounts for either increases or decreases.
For the week ending July 13, pump prices in Metro Manila averaged P67.20 per liter for RON 91 gasoline, P72.80 for diesel, and P100.40 for kerosene. The DOE also reported that the overall fuel supply buffer rose to 47.87 days as of July 10 from 46.50 days a week earlier. Gasoline stocks climbed to 48.17 days from 43.72 days, and diesel to 45.69 days from 43.81 days. However, kerosene reserves fell to 148.98 days from 177.50 days, jet fuel to 80.09 days from 84.93 days, fuel oil to 33.37 days from 36.45 days, and liquefied petroleum gas to 39.51 days from 42.28 days.
