Gasoline prices in the nation are to drop NT$1.0 per liter this week, while the cost of diesel fuel is to decrease by NT$0.2 per liter, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) announced separately yesterday.
The larger-than-expected drop in gasoline prices is due to a substantial decline in international crude oil prices last week, CPC said.
Effective today, gasoline prices at CPC and Formosa stations are to fall to NT$28.6, NT$30.1 and NT$32.1 per liter for 92, 95 and 98-octane unleaded gasoline respectively, the companies said.
The price of premium diesel is to decrease to NT$27.3 per liter at CPC stations and to NT$27.1 at Formosa pumps, they said.
CPC said that based on its floating oil price formula, the cost of crude oil fell 6.17 percent last week from a week earlier.
Meanwhile, Formosa attributed the decline in crude oil prices to factors including a fall in China’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index last month, a massive sell-off in regional banking stocks in the US and growing market concerns about an economic recession.
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