Unioil cuts pump prices

MANILA, Philippines - Independent oil player Unioil Petroleum Philippines has slashed its pump prices as oil prices continue to soften across the globe.

In a text message, Unioil said it has reduced prices of diesel by 40 centavos per liter and unleaded and premium gasoline by 70 centavos per liter. Other oil firms are expected to announce similar price cuts this week.

“We hope the roll back would continue. For the past few weeks, we have seen the softening of world oil prices due to the view about the European economic crisis and the issue in the Middle East has somehow subsided,” Energy undersecretary Jose Layug Jr. said.

Prices of Dubai crude, the benchmark for Asia, eased to $107.79 per barrel on May 16 from $109.40 on May 12 after the European Central Bank said it has stopped providing refinancing to some undercapitalized Greek banks.

Last week, almost all major and independent oil firms slashed prices of premium gasoline by P1.70 per liter, diesel by P1.60 per liter and kerosene by P1.50 per liter.

The oil price drop is now on its fifth consecutive week, while there have been 10 price rollback and 10 price increases since the start of the year.

Based on Department of Energy (DOE) data, net price increase for gasoline and diesel stood at P4.20 and P1.54 per liter, respectively, as of May 14.

Under the Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act of 1998, oil firms can price their products based on market forces so as to encourage competition.

The deregulation law prohibits the government from intervening or influencing the pricing schemes of oil companies.

The DOE, however, requested oil firms to report to the department any price adjustment before its implementation.