DOE exec: Int’l events, stronger peso may bring down oil prices next week

Recent international developments and the Philippine peso’s improving strength may help bring down prices of fuel products by next week, a Department of Energy official said Wednesday. “We noticed that the tension in Egypt has eased. The increase in interest rates in China will surely bring down demand for oil there, even as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has increased oil production," DOE Undersecretary Jose Layug Jr. said in Filipino in an interview on dzBB radio. He also said the improving exchange rate of the peso, which is nearing the $1:P40 mark, may also help bring down prices of fuel in the coming week. “Let’s just hope nothing happens in the international scene that will cause world prices of fuel to go up again," he added. Layug said fuel firms heeded the DOE’s request to give public transport operators a Valentine’s gift of sorts by not increasing the prices of their products this week. As of Wednesday morning, he said, fuel firms have not advised his office of any plan to hike fuel prices. He stressed that the DOE can only go as far as making appeals to the oil companies not to increase their prices, saying “Alam naman natin na ang oil industry ay deregulated." “This week we do not see any movement in world prices of fuel. Perhaps there may be some adjustments in prices next week," he said. Also, he thanked oil firms for heeding DOE’s request to defer any price adjustment for diesel fuel for the meantime. — LBG, GMA News