LOCAL pump prices are on the rise this week, brought about by the heightened tensions in the Middle East.
Starting Tuesday, gasoline prices are expected to increase by P3.65 per liter, while diesel will be sold at P10.68 per liter more. Kerosene will shoot up by P11.77 per liter. The numbers were released by the Department of Energy (DOE) on Monday.
Oil companies implement weekly price adjustments to reflect movements in the world oil market. World oil prices are rising due to an elevated geopolitical risk premium following Iranian attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and subsequent US retaliatory strikes.
DOE Secretary Sharon Garin said the government is actively taking all legal measures to protect consumers from rising global oil prices caused by heightened tensions and renewed bombing in the Middle East.
While global supply chain disruptions cannot be controlled, domestic measures are actively working to ease the impact on consumers. ‘The DOE is on top of the situation…we can’t change the direction of the global market but we can act on how it reaches our people and there are measures already working to ease impact,’ Garin said during Monday’s news conference.
These include fuel subsidies for qualified jeepney and UV Express drivers, as well as other eligible beneficiaries. As of July 20, 2026, a total of 2,734 gasoline stations nationwide are participating in the government’s fuel subsidy program. Of these, 503 are located in the National Capital Region, 502 in North Luzon, 673 in Southern Luzon, 484 in Visayas, and 550 in Mindanao.
‘This program offers a discount of P10 per liter on fuel purchased weekly for each jeepney. They have an allowance of 1,500 liters; so, if they consume that full amount within the week, the allocation resets the following week, and the P10-per-liter discount applies again,’ Garin explained.
Crucially, the country’s fuel supply and inventories remain completely adequate and sufficient. DOE data showed that gasoline supply will last 43 days; diesel, 45 days; kerosene, 139 days; jet fuel, 82 days; fuel oil, 28 days; and LPG, 34 days.
‘Let me assure the public on the point that matters most. Our fuel supply is sufficient. Inventories remain adequate. Filipinos can go about their normal routines and operations with confidence….We are still above our legally required 30 days,’ said Garin.
The renewed tensions in the Middle East will not prompt the government to place fuel orders yet. ‘Maybe not yet, but we are constantly monitoring if the need will arise,’ said DOE Undersecretary Alessandro Sales.
Asked for an update on the planned strategic petroleum reserves (SPR) with the Maharlika Investment Corp. (MIC) and the Philippine National Oil Company (PNO), Sales said ‘It is progressing.’
‘Also, all elements to start the storage tanks are there. In fact, there are interested entities, both public and private entities, who want to participate. So, this initiative is ongoing, and we are going to moving forward with it,’ said Sales.
The P5-billion SPR is eyeing two properties in Luzon and Mindanao as potential sites, with each of the sites handling 15 million barrels of fuel.
In addition to the fuel subsidy program, the DOE is strongly urging oil companies to stagger their price adjustments. At the same time, it cited efforts of oil firms to help ease the burden on motorists by absorbing some of the costs.
Garin explained that the DOE prescribes oil prices based on replacement costs, having encouraged oil companies to fill their tanks during peak prices in April and May. Because market prices have since dropped, these companies are currently selling their inventory at a loss. While actual retail prices remain much higher than the government-prescribed rates, the DOE has no legal mandate to enforce staggered price increases. Instead, the government relies on voluntary cooperation from oil companies to stagger price hikes and ease the financial burden on consumers.
‘So now, four weeks or three weeks have passed, the price has dropped, so they were actually selling it at a loss. But because that’s how it works, you know. That’s how your business is. There are times when you make a profit, there are times when you make a loss.
‘So, when we go to the staggering prices,it’s not in the mandate of DOE. This is actually an ask from DOE or the government to the oil companies: that we are in this together, help us, so that the burden on the people is not excessive, if they can stagger their prices. So, this is, in fact, voluntary on their part,’ said the energy chief.
The DOE is awaiting a report from oil firms on possible staggered price hikes for the week.