Taipei: State-owned oil supplier CPC Corp., Taiwan, announced Saturday that it would leave domestic gasoline and diesel prices unchanged next week in a bid to ease inflationary pressures amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East.
According to Focus Taiwan, this marks the 11th consecutive week that CPC has maintained domestic gasoline and diesel prices at the same level, despite international crude oil prices being approximately 30 percent higher than before the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. In an official statement, CPC indicated that it would recommend retail prices remain at NT$32.4 (US$1.02), NT$33.9, and NT$35.9 per liter for 92, 95, and 98-octane unleaded gasoline, respectively, from midnight on Monday through June 21.
Additionally, the price for premium diesel will remain at NT$31.0 per liter during the same period. CPC operates under a floating price mechanism, which is based on a weighting of 70 percent Dubai crude and 30 percent Brent crude. This week, the average international oil price fell to US$90.12 per barrel, down from US$95.71 last week. However, a weakening Taiwan dollar, which averaged NT$31.623 against the U.S. dollar this week compared to NT$31.440 last week, offset the benefits of the latest crude price decline.
The decision to maintain steady domestic fuel prices will result in the company absorbing a loss of NT$1.2 per liter on diesel sales, although it will not incur any losses on gasoline sales. Since the onset of the Middle East conflict, CPC estimates it will have absorbed NT$17.63 billion in losses by not fully reflecting the international crude oil price increases in local fuel prices.
CPC confirmed it would continue to adhere to government directives to stabilize domestic fuel prices, aiming to mitigate inflationary pressures on both consumers and businesses.