Petrol overshoots 5 RON per litre mark

The price of a litre of petrol surpassed the psychological threshold of 5 RON in most fuelling stations, after the price was once again raised by 4-6 bani (1 RON -100 bani) as of January 1st 2011 following the hike in excise duties.

So, compared with the first day of last year, the petrol price at the pump went up by around 24%, and that of diesel oil by 28%, in a year when most Romanians were affected by redundancies, salary cuts and tax hikes.

Moreover, fuel demand went down for the second consecutive year, while the price of oil was relatively stable, ranging between 75 and 90 dollars, with the rise occurring in the last part of 2009.

“I can’t find an explanation for the progression of the fuel price. The price of oil only started to rise close to the end of the year, and the RON remained steady across the whole of 2010,” says economic analyst Aurelian Dochia.

On the other hand, players in the oil sector have said repeatedly that their pricing policy takes into account international quotes of oil products, as well as the circumstances of the Romanian market.

The litre of diesel oil is also close to the 5-RON mark, with reference prices displayed by some players in the oil sector, such as is the case of Rompetrol, showing that this type of fuel costs 5.03 RON per litre as of January 1st.