(UPDATE) PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will meet with members of his Cabinet today to discuss how to ease the burden of rising gasoline and diesel prices on consumers, after suspending excise taxes on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and kerosene on Monday.
In a briefing in Malacañang, Marcos said he would meet the interagency body tasked to ensure the stability of essential goods and services during an energy emergency to discuss if the same would be done for gasoline and diesel.
The removal of the excise tax on LPG would be equivalent to a reduction of P3.36 per kilogram for LPG and P5.60 per liter of kerosene, Marcos said.
The tax cuts would take effect on April 14.
“That means the cost of cooking and buying the daily needs of families will be reduced,” the president said.
Possible adjustments to excise taxes on gasoline and diesel will be discussed in the meeting of the Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food and Transport (Uplift) Committee on Tuesday, he said.
The tax relief comes as global oil prices remain volatile due to the war in the Middle East, prompting the government to roll out measures to ease their impact on consumers.
The Palace on Monday said it is concerned over the failed peace negotiations between the United States and Iran, and warned of a prolonged global oil supply crisis.
“It’s not good news because what we want and pray for, and it’s not just the Philippines but the whole world, is a permanent cessation of conflict in the Middle East. Definitely, if this continues, it will have effects on petroleum products,” Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said in Filipino in a press briefing.
Castro noted that the longer negotiations are stalled, the more that volatility of global oil supply and prices could affect the Philippines, a nation highly dependent on oil exports.
Relief for households
LPG and kerosene are widely used for cooking and basic household needs, particularly among low-income families, making them critical in managing daily expenses.
The measure is anchored on Republic Act 12316, signed last month, which authorizes the president to suspend or reduce excise taxes on petroleum products when global oil prices breach specified thresholds.
The move complements other interventions under the Uplift program, including fuel subsidies for public utility vehicles and service contracting to support commuters.
Food security is also on the agenda.
“It is very important that we watch the prices now. Oil, we cannot do very much about. But we also have to see what else we can look at and do. All of these measures are mostly centered around the price of food, to keep the price of food down,” he added.
“I have ordered the Department of Agriculture and the Tariff Commission to lower the tariff on imported foods to help lower prices for our shoppers. But this directive is clear. This cannot be done lightly. Every step of the way, the protection of our local production is clear,” he said.
“We will protect consumers, farmers and industry. That’s the balance we’re looking for.... As you know, the economy is a complicated system. So, if you do something in one part, it has an effect on the other part,” he said.
The Philippines, being highly dependent on oil imports, has been reeling from the effects of the hostilities in the Middle East.
The chief executive said the government is exerting extra efforts to strike a balance to be able to extend assistance to all affected sectors.
“The gap that we have to close will be closed by government. It will be government funds that we will have to use. We will have to take funds from other projects, other programs,” he said.
The Department of Finance told a congressional hearing on Monday that it was waiting for instructions from the Office of the President on the lifting of the excise tax on fuel.
“Right now, there is no directive for us. We are still waiting for it,” Finance Undersecretary Rolando Ligon said in Monday’s hearing of the Legislative Energy and Development Committee at the House of Representatives.
Fuel price rollback
Meanwhile, oil companies said fuel prices are expected to drop this week, starting today, April 14, as the news of a temporary ceasefire between the US and Iran eased oil market jitters.
Shell said diesel prices will decline by P23 per liter, gasoline prices by P6.50 per liter and kerosene by P11.50 per liter.
Meanwhile, Unioil announced that it will cut diesel prices by P20.90 per liter and lower gasoline prices by P4.50 per liter.
Jetti Petroleum said that it will roll back diesel prices by P2.70 per liter and implement no price changes for gasoline.
Petron said it will lower diesel prices by P20.89 per liter, decrease gasoline prices by P4.43 per liter and reduce kerosene prices by P8.50 per liter.
Petrogazz said that it will drop diesel prices by P20.95 per liter and roll back gasoline prices by P4.50 per liter.
Last week, diesel prices went up by around P15 to P19.80 per liter, gasoline prices increased by P4.90 to P5.90 per liter and kerosene prices jumped by P8.10 to P9.10 per liter.
Transport strike
Also on Monday, the transport group Manibela declared a three-day transport strike from Wednesday to Friday, saying the protest was driven by the government’s slow response to rising fuel prices and its failure to curb what the group described as abusive oil company profits.
Manibela chairman Mar Valbuena said the strike would bring together their group and other transport organizations in a coordinated protest against what he called government neglect, particularly by the Department of Energy and the Department of Transportation, amid the continuing oil price crisis.
