Up to 11% rise in fuel prices
abu dhabi — Driving in the UAE will cost more as the government on Thursday decided to pass on the impact of rising oil prices to the motorists who will pay up to 11 per cent more for filling their tanks in the coming month.
From May 1, the new prices charged at the pumps are: unleaded petrol 98 Super, Dh1.78 a litre; unleaded petrol 95 Special, Dh1.67, up 10.60 per cent; and Hi-Octane-91, Dh1.60, up 11.11 per cent. The price for diesel is up 2.56 per cent at Dh1.60. “The rise in fuel prices for May was expected with the strengthening in global oil prices,” said Dr Monica Malik, chief economist at ADCB.
abu dhabi — A high level committee has passed on the impact of rise in oil prices on to the motorists who will pay up to 11 per cent for filling their fuel tanks.
The committee headed by the Mattar Al Nayadi undersecretary and attended by the CEOs of oil distributing and marketing companies decided to hike the prices by up to 11.11 per cent.
However, the drag on inflation will moderate with the monthly rise. However, the drag on inflation will moderate with the monthly rise.
From Sunday, May 1, the new prices charged at the pumps are: Unleaded gasoline 98 Super Dh1.78 a liter from Dh1.62 in April; Unleaded gasoline 95 has gone up by 10.60 per cent to Dh1.67 a litre; Hi octane-91 has seen the highest increase of 11.11 per cent reaching Dh1.60 a litre from Dh1.44 in last month. Diesel price is hiked by 2.56 per cent to Dh1.60.
The chief reason behind Thursday’s petroleum prices rise was the recent rise in oil prices on the international markets. The Opec Daily Basket price rose to April 27 to $41.38 a barrel from $37.39 on March 27 2016.
“The rise in fuel prices for May was expected with the strengthening in global oil prices,” says Dr Monica Malik the chief economist at Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank. She said the price for May is still below the previously regulated prices.
On Thursday, Brent crude futures were trading at $47.05 per barrel, down 13 cents from their last settlement and off an earlier high of $47.47. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were down 19 cents at $45.14 a barrel.
Both Brent and WTI have rallied more than 70 percent since their respective 2016 lows in January and February. Commenting on the inflationary impact of petroleum prices, Dr Monica Malik said “the drag on inflation will moderate with the monthly rise.”
Last week, inflation in Abu Dhabi surged 2.8 per cent year-on-year in March, with the largest contribution coming from housing, water and power and fuels prices.
The inflation rate for the first quarter of 2016 was 3.2 per cent year-on-year, says the Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi or SCAD. Sameer Suliman chief executive officer of Fathima International that owns supermarkets, catering and food imports said the recent rise in oil prices is good for the domestic economic and will boost business sentiments. The upwards “increase in diesel prices can be managed by the supermarkets” and food companies, he added.