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By Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo, Reporter
Consumers were again caught off guard on
Saturday as oil companies declared another round of price hikes at
the pumps.
Petron Corp., Pilipinas Shell, Chevron
Philippines, and Total Philippines implemented a P1 per liter
increase in the price of their diesel, gasoline, and kerosene
products on Saturday.
Besides these adjustments, Total also
increased the price of its liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) products,
including its auto-LPG at the pumps, by P1 per kilogram.
The oil companies attributed the price hike at
the pumps, the ninth for the year, to the continuing rise of oil
prices in the world market.
The average price of Dubai crude, the benchmark
used by refiners, increased by $6.65 per barrel to $103.41 per
barrel in April from $96.76 per barrel in March. It reached an
all-time high of $110.20 per barrel last April 28.
Raul Concepcion, Consumer Oil Price Watch
chairman, said that government should promote transparency on oil
companies’ transactions “so the public may be informed if
there will be impending adjustments.”
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