Russian gasoline prices unchanged for 5th straight week - Rosstat
MOSCOW. Dec 13 (Interfax) - Retail gasoline prices in Russia were unchanged in the week of December 4-10 for a fifth straight week, after rising 0.1% in each of the five preceding weeks and holding steady for seven weeks before that, the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) reported.
Gasoline prices are up 9.5% in the year so far as of December 10.
Diesel fuel prices were up 0.2% in the latest week after holding steady the previous week and increasing 0.4%, 2.2%, 0.1%, 0.3% and 0.4% in the five preceding weeks. Diesel prices are up 14.8% in the year so far.
Last week, gasoline prices increased in 6 regional centers across Russia, led by an increase of 0.6% in Khanty-Mansiisk. Prices decreased in 16 regional centers, led by declines of 0.5% in Abakan and Petrozavodsk.
Gasoline prices were unchanged in Moscow and St. Petersburg last week.
A liter of Ai-92 gasoline in Moscow cost between 40.80 and 43.99 rubles; the price range for Ai-95 was 44.59 to 47.48 rubles. In St. Petersburg, a liter of Ai-92 gasoline cost between 40.89 rubles and 43.09 rubles; the price range for Ai-95 was 44.29 rubles to 46.99 rubles.
The average price for a liter of gasoline nationwide was 43.47 rubles on December 10 (43.48 rubles on December 3) including Ai-92 - 41.53 rubles (41.54 rubles), Ai-95 - 44.82 rubles (44.83 rubles) and Ai-98 - 50.41 rubles (50.38 rubles). Diesel fuel cost 46.58 rubles per liter as of December 10 compared with 46.51 rubles on December 3.
Gasoline production fell 7.1% to 808,400 tonnes in December 3-9 compared with the previous week. Diesel production was down 4.1% to 1.534 million tonnes.
At the beginning of November the government, the vertically integrated oil companies and independent fuel sector participants agreed to hold down wholesale fuel prices until the end of March 2019. Gasoline prices rose 0.2% in November, after increasing 0.4% in October and 0.1% in September. Gasoline prices declined 0.3% in August and 0.2% in July after the government lowered fuel excise taxes and reached agreement with the oil companies to freeze oil prices at the May 30 level following steep fuel price inflation in late spring.
The government's first effort to rein in fuel price inflation came after steep price growth at the end of spring, with prices rising 2.1% in June and 5.6% in May. They were up 1% in April, held steady in March and February and rose 0.4% in January.