Family budgets could be stretched a little further this week, as consumers will be greeted with relatively substantial reprieve on their drive to the petroleum stations – especially with the big-time rollback for gasoline prices.

Based on the pricing adjustment advisories of the oil companies, the price of gasoline products will be cut by P2.00 per liter; while diesel prices will be pared by P0.50 per liter; and kerosene prices will be lower by P0.85 per liter.

As of press time, the oil firms that already sent notices on their price reductions effective Tuesday (May 14) had been Shell Pilipinas Corporation, Seaoil Philippines and Cleanfuel; while their rival players are expected to match this week’s pricing trends.

The oil companies typically enforce cost movements that follow the swing of the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS) index, but other factors such as foreign exchange rate, freight cost, market premium as well as competitive forces in the domestic market are also integrated in the calculation of weekly price adjustments at the domestic pumps.

According to industry experts, prices were generally tamed last week as tension in the Middle East somehow cooled on prospects of a ceasefire on the Israel-Iran conflict; while concerns of supply flow to markets have likewise eased temporarily.

As of Friday (May 10) trading, however, international benchmark Brent crude started flirting again into the $85 per barrel territory – and that was propelled by reports of declining US crude inventory as well as increase in Chinese imports.

Within Southeast Asia, one of the market movers had been the sale of Shell Singapore’s Bukom refinery to global trading house Glencore and Indonesian chemicals company PT Chandra Asti – in a deal pegged at $1.0 billion.

On China’s import escalation, market watchers have cited signals of more robust manufacturing activity in the world’s second biggest economy.

This early, there are also market jitters being evoked by the pronouncements of US Presidential candidate Donald Trump on his intent to reverse the energy policy of the Biden administration if he can re-take office at the White House.

This week’s rollback at Philippine pumps could bring cheers to the Filipino consumers, but industry players cautioned that the ‘financial relief’ may not last long and that may already take the opposite track in the weeks ahead.