Govt likely to cut diesel oil price

The government is likely to cut the price of subsidized diesel oil in December if global crude prices continue to fall in November, a minister said.

"We keep monitoring the oil prices in November which still has 22 days left. If the global oil prices in November fall quickly they will affect the price of diesel oil in December," Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro was quoted by Antara news agency as saying on Sunday.

In addition to the global crude prices, the government is also monitoring the rupiah`s exchange rate against the US dollar and reviewing the amount of fuel oil subsidy before deciding to cut the price of subsidized diesel oil, he said.

The government on Thursday (Nov 6) announced it will lower the price of subsidized gasoline to Rp 5,500 a liter from Rp 6,000 a liter as of Dec. 1.

Meanwhile, the prices of subsidized diesel oil and kerosene remain at Rp 5,500 a liter and Rp 2,500 a liter respectively.

The government plans to evaluate the prices of subsidized fuel oil once every month following a recent drop in global crude prices. (*)