Motorists with gasoline-fed vehicles will have higher degree of financial torment in the coming week, as industry players are anticipating rise in prices for that commodity at the scale of P0.80 to P0.95 per liter.

For diesel, the calculation of the oil companies would be a leaner price increase of P0.30 to P0.35 per liter; while kerosene will potentially go up by P0.25 to P0.35 per liter.

This is already the second round of price hikes and it is just the second week of 2021 – a year when demand recovery in oil markets will flourish as more countries advance on the Covid-19 inoculation of their population.

One of the major factors that influenced global oil prices last week had been the outcome of the recent meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its ally-producers, known as the OPEC + countries.

There had been consensus on increasing production within the January to March stretch this year – starting with 75,000 barrels in January then ramping it up by additional 120,000 barrels through February and March; a scale lower than the earlier agreed 500,000 barrels per day that they intend to pump into market.

However, biggest oil producer Saudi Arabia came up with a surprising announcement of 1.0 million production cut and that triggered rise in prices to the level of US$50 per barrel level.

The United States also reported higher-than-expected draw in inventories and that has been signaling more robust demand recovery, which also has its spillover effect in other core markets.

In the Asian market, gasoline demand is seen to be on continuing rebound, hence, the heftier price adjustments accruing for that commodity.

The ricochet in Asian demand, according to market experts, has been compensating the slide in fuel products usage in Europe because of the lockdowns that were enforced to further stem the spread of the new coronavirus strain.

For the Philippine market in particular, industry players are also aiming for demand recovery this year, albeit it may not be at the pre-pandemic level yet because of the lingering uncertainty on when the Covid-19 vaccine will really reach the country.