Oil supply steady, crude prices down but oil price hike expected

National

THE Philippines' fuel supply buffer has improved and global prices of crude oil continue to fall, even as the Department of Energy (DOE) confirmed a fresh round of pump price adjustments set to take effect Tuesday, July 7.

Local oil firms will roll back gasoline prices while raising diesel and kerosene rates, the DOE's Oil Industry Management Bureau said Monday, July 6.

Gasoline products will have adjustments ranging from a ₱1.75-per-liter rollback to a ₱0.25 increase.

But diesel will rise between ₱1.57 and ₱3.57 per liter, while kerosene climbs ₱1.70 to ₱3.70 per liter.

Energy Undersecretary Alessandro Sales said the mixed adjustments trace back to global crude movements, which have eased in recent weeks.

Dubai crude has slipped below $80 per barrel, dropping to around $65 last week, he told reporters at a Monday briefing.

That decline, however, hasn't yet reached local pumps.

Sales explained oil companies price their products against the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS), not spot crude rates, so the benefit takes longer to filter through.

“This is not immediately translated to our pump prices. Kasi ang basehan pa rin ng mga oil companies sa produkto ay yung Mean of Platts Singapore," he said.

He added that MOPS for both diesel and gasoline may still climb before stabilizing within one to three months.

On the supply front, Sales said roughly 30 percent of the country's fuel now arrives via direct delivery, largely sourced from Saudi Arabia.

He cited reports that Saudi output is running near 90 percent of capacity, with the United Arab Emirates also posting strong production numbers.(RBE)