Petron, Caltex slash oil prices as early X'mas treat

By PATRICIA DE LEON, GMANews.TV Two of the big three oil firms in the country on Wednesday said they would be slashing their rates by P2 per liter for both diesel and gasoline as an early Christmas gift to Filipinos. Both Petron Corp. and Caltex Philippines will be shaving off P2 per liter for their diesel and gasoline products in Metro Manila and Metro Cebu gas stations. The lower rates, which will be effective starting 12:01 a.m. Thursday (December 21) will last until midnight of January 1, 2007. Petron Corp., the country's largest oil refiner, first announced the move. "This promo, called Pamaskong Handog ng Petron, is our early Christmas gift to the Filipino people," Petron spokesperson Raffy Ledesma said in a phone interview. After the promo period, Ledesma said prices will go back to their December 20 level. Rival company Caltex then quickly followed suit. "This is in the spirit of Christmas. This is also admittedly, a competitive move because our competitor is doing a similar thing," Caltex public affairs manager Mark Quebral said in a separate interview. "This will definitely have an impact on our bottom line since oil prices are actually rising because of the winter season and oil producing countries' decision to cut supplies. But we are in a competitive environment so we have to compete," Quebral added. Quebral, however, said there would be no assurance that prices at Caltex would go back to their December 20 level after the promo period expires. "We'll have to wait until January 1 comes," he said. The third major oil player, Shell Philippines, has yet to announce a similar move as of posting time. - GMANews.TV