Oil firms cut diesel, kerosene prices; gasoline costs rise

On the first Tuesday of August 2022, three major oil companies operating in the Philippines made simultaneous moves at the pump that told a story of diverging pressures on different fuel types. Pilipinas Shell, Cleanfuel, and PetroGazz all reduced the price of diesel by sixty centavos per liter and kerosene by seventy-five centavos per liter. But gasoline moved in the opposite direction—all three companies raised its price by seventy-five centavos per liter that same day.

The mixed signals reflected the volatile state of global energy markets in mid-2022, when crude oil prices were swinging sharply and different petroleum products were responding to distinct supply and demand pressures. Diesel, used heavily in commercial transportation and agriculture across the archipelago, was getting cheaper. Kerosene, a fuel for heating and lighting in many Philippine households, followed suit. But gasoline, the fuel that powers private vehicles and small engines, was becoming more expensive just as consumers were adjusting to months of rising costs.

To understand the weight of these daily adjustments, the broader picture matters. The Department of Energy had been tracking cumulative price movements since the start of the year. By late July, when these August price changes took effect, gasoline had climbed by forty centavos per liter over the previous month alone. Diesel had fallen by one peso and eighty-five centavos per liter in that same window. Kerosene had dropped by one peso and thirty centavos per liter. These swings showed that the market was not moving in one direction—different fuels were experiencing different pressures, and the companies were passing those pressures directly to consumers at the pump.

But the month-to-month picture obscured something more consequential: the year-to-date totals. Since January 1, 2022, gasoline prices had accumulated a net increase of eighteen pesos and ninety centavos per liter. Diesel had climbed thirty-two pesos and ninety-five centavos per liter. Kerosene had risen twenty-eight pesos and five centavos per liter. These were not small movements. For a consumer filling a fifty-liter tank with gasoline, the year-to-date increase meant paying an extra nine hundred and forty-five pesos compared to January prices. For diesel users, the cumulative burden was even heavier—one thousand six hundred and forty-seven pesos and fifty centavos more per tank.

The August 1 price adjustments were a temporary reprieve for some Filipinos and a fresh burden for others. Truckers and commercial operators who relied on diesel saw a modest break in their fuel costs. Households using kerosene for cooking or lighting got a small reduction. But drivers of private vehicles faced yet another increase, adding to the strain that had accumulated over seven months of volatile pricing. The pattern suggested that relief and burden were being distributed unevenly across the economy, with different sectors and income levels experiencing the fuel crisis in fundamentally different ways.