Shanghai said yesterday that it has raised prices for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to help counter shortages stemming from a gap between local, controlled prices and costs paid by suppliers.
The increase will mainly affect the city’s 280,000 moped drivers, most of whom use scooters for commuting to work.
The benchmark LPG price for scooters and taxis was raised to 4.70 yuan (US$0.68) per liter from 4.20 yuan and 3.60 yuan a liter respectively, an announcement on the city government’s Web site said.
The price hike appeared to be limited to Shanghai.
Shanghai banned the use of gasoline and diesel powered scooters in 2006, leaving city commuters reliant on scooters powered by LPG. Only about 3,000 of the city’s tens of thousands of taxis use LPG, and their drivers will receive subsidies, the government said.
Thanks to losses from the differential between international and local prices, half of the city’s 100 LPG filling stations have closed, forcing scooter drivers to contend with long lines. The government urged operators to reopen stations as quickly as possible.
Similar problems with gasoline and diesel have led to shortages across the country. The government hiked fuel prices by about 11 percent in November but has since frozen them, seeking to avoid a further fanning of inflation that has touched 12-year highs since the beginning of the year.
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