RP oil firms cut price hike

RP oil firms cut price hike

MANILA (DPA): Oil companies in the Philippines on Saturday told President Joseph Estrada they would scale down impending increases in petrol and petroleum products.

But the oil companies rejected Estrada's request to hold off petrol price increases, citing the drop in value of the Philippine peso and the rise in crude oil prices on the world market.

Top executives of Petron Corporation, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation, Caltex Philippines Incorporated, and Total Petroleum Philippines Corporation agreed to cut their proposed price hikes by almost 50 per cent.

A proposed 95-centavo (0.023 dollars) per liter increase in petrol prices, for example, would be halved to 50 centavos (0.012 dollars) per liter.

Oil companies also agreed to postpone indefinitely a proposed 40- centavo (0.01 dollars) per kilogram increase in liquefied petroleum gas, which is used by households and commercial establishments.