Motorists are in for a new round of financial relief next week as the oil companies have estimated significant rollback in oil prices that will be reflected at the domestic pumps next week.

Based on the initial calculation of the industry players, the price of gasoline products will be down by P0.65 to P1.05 per liter; while diesel prices will have a reduction of P0.60 to P1.00 per liter.

For kerosene, which is the other commodity with weekly price adjustments, its price is expected to go down at a range of P0.75 to P1.15 per liter, according to the oil companies.

If reckoned purely on the three-day swing of fuel commodities as indexed on the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS), the projected price cuts would be: P1.054 per liter for gasoline; P1.034 per liter for diesel; and P1.148 per liter for kerosene products.

The oil firms indicated that rollback in pump prices is almost certain already for next week, but the final price adjustments may still change because there would still be two days of remaining trading in the regional market.

On a year-to-date basis, data from the Department of Energy (DOE) would show that price adjustments since January still logged net increases of P6.90 per liter for gasoline and P4.05 per liter for diesel products; while kerosene already posted a net reduction of P4.00 per liter.

In the constant seesaw of prices, next week’s cost decline will be a reverse of the price hikes implemented in recent days, hence, this will be a very favorable turn when it comes to household budgets.

According to industry experts, the plunge in global oil prices in recent trading days had been mainly precipitated by speculations that the alliance of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other global producers has been leaning towards production hike starting this October.

With that portended development, it was noted that markets could be well-supplied with oil despite lingering concerns of demand slowdown due to the weaker-than-expected economic data of key countries, especially China.

And even prior to the reported output escalation of the OPEC+ producers, it was emphasized that some of its members – primarily Iraq, had already been at its overproduction mode despite recurrent calls for trimmed quotas within their league.

For an import dependent economy like the Philippines, drop in prices will be an auspicious twist of fate for consumers, especially so since many Filipinos would already start stocking up for gifts and other holiday purchases in preparation for the long Christmas season.