Oil firms open 2025 with major pump price hike

Motorists will have to pay more for petroleum products this week, as retailers on Monday announced a major pump price hike to open 2025, following the rollback implemented in the previous week.

In separate advisories, Chevron Philippines Inc. (Caltex), Petron Corp., Seaoil Philippines Corp. and Shell Pilipinas Corp. said they will hike prices per liter of gasoline and kerosene by P1.00 each, and diesel by P1.40.

Cleanfuel, Petro Gazz, and Unioil Petroleum Philippines Inc. will implement the same changes, excluding kerosene which they do not carry.

The adjustments will take effect at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, January 7, for all the firms except for Cleanfuel which will hike prices at 4:01 p.m. the same day.

Other firms have yet to make similar announcements for the week.

The latest advisories are in line with earlier projections made by the Department of Energy-Oil Industry Management Bureau (DOE-OIMB), citing extended production cuts until April 2025, higher demand in US and Europe due to severe cold blasts, and geopolitical risks and trade tensions.

Firms last week rolled back the prices per liter of diesel and gasoline by P0.30 each, and kerosene by P0.90.

Adjustments in 2024 stood at a net increase of P12.75 per liter for gasoline and P11.00 per diesel, and a net decrease of P2.70 per liter for kerosene. —KG, GMA Integrated News