Renalyn Ramirez - Philstar.com
October 12, 2026 | 3:16pm
Motorists line up at a gasoline station on March 1, 2026, two days before the scheduled fuel price hikes, as domestic pump prices are expected to rise amid escalating tensions between Iran and Israel, which have pushed up global oil and gasoline costs.
The STAR / Ryan Baldemor
MANILA, Philippines — Another round of mixed fuel price adjustments is set to take effect this week, with diesel prices set to roll back while gasoline and kerosene prices rise.
The Department of Energy (DOE) announced the following changes on Monday, October 12:
- Diesel - down by P3.01 per liter
- Gasoline - up by P1.56 per liter
- Kerosene - up by P1.77 per liter
The adjustments will take effect on Tuesday morning, October 13, and will remain in effect until Monday next week, October 19.
Last week, an uneven fuel price movement was also implemented, with diesel prices dropping by P1.30 per liter, while gasoline rose by P1.93 per liter and kerosene by P3.30 per liter.
Price influence
The energy department explained that several factors affected this week’s price movements, including China’s export suspension, the availability of middle distillates, and recent global diesel supply relief measures.
The DOE said that while all oil products are affected by China’s recent announcement on the temporary suspension of refined petroleum product exports, recent international agreements have contributed to the rollback in diesel prices.
“Itong diesel kasi may malaking developments dito, positive developments,” DOE Oil Industry and Management Bureau Director Rino Abad said in a press briefing on Monday.
(“There are major, positive developments in diesel [supplies]”)
Among these developments aimed at easing the global diesel shortage, according to the DOE, was the agreement reached by G7 member countries at their meeting on October 2 to immediately release 100 million barrels of petroleum supplies, particularly diesel.
Another was the agreement between the United States and Russia to immediately release 2.25 million barrels of Russian diesel to the US and global markets this October.
This will be followed by 3.75 million barrels in November, an additional 7.5 million barrels in the following months, and a potential additional 7.5 million barrels, depending on the capacity of refineries to process crude oil, according to the DOE.
Meanwhile, the upward price movement for kerosene has been attributed to its sensitivity to the availability and cost of middle distillates, a broader category of fuels that includes diesel and jet fuel.
“The G7 and US-Russia agreement could help ease the global diesel shortage, however, without the same emphasis on the release of additional supply for gasoline and kerosene, prices are expected to remain elevated for these products,” the DOE said.