Big-time oil price rollback set
Prices at Philippine pumps are expected to go down again next week at the range of 11.50 to roughly 12.00 per liter, according to the figures set out by the oil companies.
Based on estimates, gasoline prices will likely be cut by 11.50 per liter; while diesel will be rolled back by close to 12.00 per liter. Price cuts are anticipated from this weekend to Tuesday (January 1, 2019).
The expected big-time price rollback will be in keeping with the precipitously sliding oil commodity prices in the world market.
The oil firms indicated though that the final price cuts would still change depending on the outcome of trading in regional oil markets on Friday (December 28).
Philippine pump prices are anchored on the swings of both Dubai crude (as benchmark for refiners); and the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS) for the finished product importer players of the industry.
Dubai crude has already softened to the level of US$57 per barrel in this trading week; while the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude reference of the US market had been at US$45 per barrel.
Brent crude was up $1.18, or 2.26 percent, at $53.34 a barrel at 0219 GMT, having earlier risen as much as 3.1 percent. It dropped 4.24 percent, or $2.31, the day before to settle at $52.16 per barrel.
It has been the highly buoyed inventory of the United States that was pushing prices anew to basement levels – similar to what had
happened in 2014 to 2015.
The recent move of the traditional oil producers at the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its Russian ally was not even enough to provide a counterbalance to the output of their North American counterparts.
Just last week, the US reported a surprising rise on its oil inventory – reaching 6.9 million barrels vis-à-vis previous expectations of about 2.9 million barrels.
Give such recent developments internationally, rollbacks in pump prices are expected reigning for most part of next year again – especially within the first quarter.
Market analysts are similarly forecasting that global oil prices will likely level off at the range of US$50 to a high of US$70 per barrel throughout next year.