Cooking gas, auto-LPG prices up

MANILA, Philippines - Petron Corp., the country’s biggest oil refiner, implemented a 15-centavo per kilogram increase in the prices of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and adjusted the prices of auto-LPG by 8 centavos per liter.

The adjustments took effect midnight of Sunday.

Auto-LPG prices now range from P31.53 to P33.50, while an 11-kilogram LPG cylinder costs P690 to P809.

“This reflects the slight increase in international contract prices,” Petron said in its advisory issued yesterday.

The increases in LPG and auto-LPG come after oil companies announced another round of oil price hikes last week, saying that the adjustments reflect movements in the global crude market.

Oil firms announced an increase of P0.50 per liter for gasoline and P0.20 per liter for diesel.

Based on the Department of Energy’s (DOE) latest oil price monitoring report, crude prices rose during the week in Asian trade, supported by worries on Libya’s oil supply disruption and an unexpected draw in US crude oil inventory.

“Moreover, the oil market has also been supported by the conflict in Ukraine – a main gas supply route for Europe from Russia. As of Sunday, 25 May 2014, traders were closely watching the result of the presidential election in Ukraine. Petro Poroshenko reportedly claimed a resounding victory in the country’s key presidential election. He immediately vowed to end a bloody pro-Russian uprising that prevented voting across swathes of the separatist east. The polls were triggered after former pro-Russian leader Viktor Yanukovych was ousted in February,” the DOE said in its report.