WORLD OIL PRICES (July 6-10, 2015 trading days)

The price of crudes slumped by an average of approximately six to nine percent in the early part of the trading week. Analysts viewed the market behavior as a “shocking but short-lived slump, triggered by a confluence of external events and exacerbated by safety-seeking investors and momentum-chasing traders”.

Specifically, oil market prices were recently regarded to have the worst slide in four months caused by the following events:

• Greece's debt woes
• China's stock market meltdown
• Talks with Iran over its nuclear program
• A stronger dollar
• A rise in the number of U.S. oil rigs

However, crude prices rose anew by the end of the week on some developments of the above-said events. Chinese stock market was said to have rebounded following the government intervention to calm the turmoil. Meanwhile, traders are also optimistic that Greece might reach a bailout deal with European leaders this weekend, and that there is still an unclear progress on an Iranian nuclear agreement with the West. An agreement with Iran would see the West lift punishing economic sanctions that have restricted the country's oil exports.

Asian gasoline market sentiment remained buoyant as of Friday. Despite a lack of new spot demand within Asia, the market was mainly supported by strong gasoline values in the US West Coast, where robust demand and supply shortage created the widest-ever backwardation in NYMEX RBOB swaps since Platts began assessing it in 2012, Platts noted.

For gasoil, the Asian market was further pressured Friday by the weight of surplus cargoes and the seasonal third quarter demand lull, reportedly the weakest in five years. Ample supply partly caused by end of the refinery turnaround season in Asia reportedly converge with high freight rates that remained a roadblock from Asia and the Persian Gulf to move oil to the West of Suez.

Overall, Dubai crude decreased week-on-week by about US$4.60/bbl. Likewise, MOPS gasoline decreased by US$2.00 and diesel by about US$5.00per barrel.

FOREX:   Peso/US$ rate depreciated further by P0.02 to P45.16, from P45.14 in previous week.  

Other recommended reference sites:  (1) http://www.aip.com.au/pricing (2) http://www.med.govt.nz/ers/oil_pet/prices/prices.html 

DOMESTIC OIL PRICES

Effective 14 July 2015, most of the oil companies implemented rollbacks in domestic prices of gasoline by P1.50/liter, diesel by P0.55/liter and kerosene by P1.60/liter.

This has brought year-to-date adjustments to a reduced net increase of P3.39/liter for gasoline while diesel reverted to a net decrease of P1.39/liter. LPG remained net at decrease of P7.05/kg.

* RON 95

For more information, call the

Department of Energy:
Pricing: 840-2187
LPG: 840-2130
Fuels: 840-5669
SMS: (0915) 4469421
Email:  oilmonitor@doe.gov.ph
Website: http://www.doe.gov.ph