Oil companies in the Philippines have once again increased pump prices, with a rise of P0.40 per liter for gasoline, P0.95 for diesel, and P0.85 for kerosene. This marks the second consecutive week of price hikes for consumers.
The adjustment took effect at 6 a.m. for Jetti, Seaoil, Caltex, PetroGazz, and Shell, while CleanFuel’s adjustment took effect at 4:01 p.m. The Department of Energy-Oil Industry Management Bureau had forecasted this increase last Friday.
The main drivers behind this price hike, according to assistant director Rodela Romero of the DOE-OIMB, were geopolitical movements, particularly in the Gaza Strip. Romero specifically mentioned the killing of three sons of a Hamas leader in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.
Despite these geopolitical tensions, Romero noted that an inventory buildup of crude and fuels in the US helped temper the overall oil price increase. This latest increase comes after last week’s pump price hike of P1.10 per liter for gasoline, P1.55 for diesel, and P1.40 for kerosene.
