Outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte has warned the new administration, which will begin its Constitutionally mandated six-year term on June 30, will bear the brunt of increasing oil prices caused by the now three-month-old Russia-Ukraine war.
The 77-year-old Duterte, in his speech in Clark, Pampanga Sunday, warned his successor to brace up for the possibility that escalating tensions between the two countries could cause skyrocketing oil prices.
“We are really going to suffer, that’s why I am thankful to God that my term is about to end. I just want him to speed up the days because the person who comes next would be pitiful. It won’t stop… Every day, the prices will increase and increase and increase until we can have a stable situation until all the countries including the Philippines will recover,” he said.
Duterte said the Russia-Ukraine war risked becoming one of “attrition” in which each side would seek to wear down the other.
He raised concerns that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine would escalate to nuclear war.
“When it escalates into a nuclear war, we won’t have anything to talk about. Everything is over,” he said.
Duterte also appealed to transport groups holding protests over fuel price hikes to thoroughly understand the factors driving up oil prices.
“Every time that you complain and go into a demonstration, just make sure that you realize and understand the importance of oil and how it would affect all nations,” he said.
Malacañang said the Philippines joined the rest of the world in praying for an “early and peaceful” resolution to the conflict between the two countries.
Meanwhile, the country’s oil firms cut pump prices by as much as P1.15 per liter effective 6 a.m. Tuesday to reflect the movement of prices in the world market.
“Petron will implement the following price rollbacks effective 6 a.m. on May 3: P0.65 per liter of gasoline; P1.15 per liter for diesel and 1.15 per liter for kerosene. These reflect movements in the international oil market,” Petron Corp., the country’s biggest oil firm, said in its advisory.
Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, Chevron Philippines, PTT Philippines, Chevron Philippines, PetroGazz, Seaoil Philippines, Flying V, and Cleanfuel issued separate advisories of the latest price cut.
Rino Abad, director for the Oil Industry Management Bureau of the Department of Energy earlier said the price cut was largely due to the surge cases driven by new Omicron variants in China and South Africa that could dampen global demand.
Meanwhile, Petron and other oil firms also rolled back the price of LPG by P5.73 to P5.75 per kilo equivalent to P63.03 to P63.25 per 11-kilo tank effective May 1.
Petron also cut its auto LPG price by P3.22 per liter to reflect the lower contract price of LPG in the world market.
On May 1, LPG prices are also expected to go down by P5.77 per kilo equivalent to around P63.47 per 11-kilo tank to reflect the lower contract price of LPG in the world market.
AutoLPG prices will likewise go down by about P3.23 per liter.
On April 26, the oil companies implemented an oil price hike in domestic oil products.
Gasoline increased by P3 per liter, diesel by P4.10 per liter, and kerosene by P3.50 per liter.
These resulted in year-to-date adjustments to stand at a net increase of P18.45 per liter for gasoline, P31.45 per liter for diesel, and P25.05 per liter for kerosene.
World oil prices have remained volatile over the Russia-Ukraine crisis, tight global oil supply, and new COVID-19 variants that could impact public health thereby affecting demand.
