Fuel Prices Rise For Fourth Time This Year
Source: Vientiane Times
Motorists across the country are rushing to petrol stations to fill up their tanks after the government announced on Friday that prices at the pump will be raised for the fourth time this year.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry issued a notice instructing petrol station owners to raise the price of fuel in line with recent price revisions.
The fourth change in fuel prices this year was set to come into effect on Saturday (February 20).
The price of premium grade petrol will rise by 380 kip per litre, regular petrol will cost an extra 270 kip per litre, and the price of diesel will increase by 270 kip per litre.
In Vientiane, the price of premium grade petrol was previously 9,860 kip per litre, regular grade petrol sold for 9,790 kip per litre, and diesel cost 8,210 kip per litre.
As of Saturday, the cost of premium grade petrol in Vientiane will be 10,240 kip per litre, regular grade will cost 9,460 kip per litre, and diesel will cost 8,480 kip litre.
The price hike was announced on February 19 by the Domestic Trade Department, Ministry of Industry and Commerce.
Laos is heavily dependent on imported consumer products including petroleum and is affected by global changes in commodity prices.
According to the latest update at GlobalPetrolPrices.com, the average price of gasoline around the world was US$1.08 per litre on February 15.
However, there is a substantial difference in price depending on the country. Richer countries tend to charge more for fuel while poorer countries and the countries that produce and export oil have significantly lower prices.
All countries have access to the same petroleum prices of international markets but then decide to impose different taxes, while an economically advanced country such as the United States has lower fuel gas prices, a recent update by the globalpetrolprices.com stated.
The website reported that the price of petrol in Laos from November 9, 2020 to February 15, 2021 averaged 9,168 kip per litre with a minimum of 8,700 kip per litre during that period and a maximum of 9,860 kip per litre on February 15.
The average global price of gasoline for this period was 12,549 kip per litre. GlobalPetrolPrices.com made comparisons in accordance with its tracking of the retail prices of motor fuel, electricity, and natural gas in more than 150 countries.
