Diesel price decrease by P19/liter, gasoline by P3/liter seen next week

Consumers and motorists should expect another hefty cut in pump prices in the coming week.

Citing the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS) trading in the past four days and foreign exchange averages, an oil industry source said that there will be a possible rollback for both diesel and gasoline next week.

The estimated reductions in the retail prices of petroleum products are as follows:

• Diesel - P17.00 to P19.00 per liter
• Gasoline - P2.00 to P3.00 per liter

MOPS is the average of daily price assessments for refined petroleum products (like gasoline and diesel) traded in Singapore, which acts as the regional hub for Asian oil trading.

The Department of Energy (DOE), as early as Wednesday, said that another round of pump price rollbacks may be expected next week as the international oil market is not pricing in US President Donald Trump’s threat to blockade the opening of the Strait of Hormuz after talks with Tehran failed to produce a deal to end the conflict. 

Fuel retailers announce official price adjustments every Monday, to be implemented on the following day.

This week, effective April 14, oil companies slashed the per liter prices of gasoline, ranging from P4.00 to P6.50 per liter, while diesel and kerosene prices were reduced by P20.00 to P23.00 per liter and P8.50 to P11.50 per liter, respectively.

The latest price adjustment was the 15th movement for this year, which resulted in a total net increase of P50.20 per liter for gasoline, P89.85 per liter for diesel, and P78.70 per liter for kerosene. —VAL, GMA News