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View Full Version : Fuel costs cuts ability to compete



NewsWhore
02-08-2011, 03:20 PM
Fuel costs an average RD$19.85 more per gallon in the Dominican Republic than in Central America, which is another of the elements that affects the Dominican industrial sector's ability to compete in relation with other countries.

Diario Libre says that according to a study created by the Henri Hebrard Consultants, taking the week of 25 January of this year as a reference, there is a progressive increase in the gap to the detriment of the Dominican Republic, since the price of the local fuel basket, excluding LPG, went up from RD$162.70 to RD$165.59, which is a 1.72% increase compared to the previous week.

On the other hand, the average in Central America increased more moderately, going from RD$143.58 to RD$145.74, an increase of 1.5% during the same period. The average price for premium diesel fuel in Central America is RD$156.71; Premium gasoline is much lower than the RD$182.90 that it costs in this country. Likewise, the average of regular gasoline in the region is RD$150.24 and in the DR it is RD$172.80; regular diesel is at RD$140.32 and in the country it is at RD$157.

All told, premium gasoline is RD$26.19 or 16.71% less expensive and regular is RD$22.56 or 15.01% less. Regular diesel costs RD$16.69 or 11.88% less than in the DR.

The only fuel in the Dominican Republic that is less costly than in Central America is LPG, since the average in Central America is RD$96.78 and here is it "only" RD$93.80.

This situation, according to the study, makes it clear that the increase in the price of oil aggravates the problem of competitiveness for the Dominican economy.

For this week, the prices of fuel are the same as last week, without including the prices of jet fuel, such as avtur and kerosene and fuel oil, which increased between RD$5 and RD$5.16 a gallon, which could affect the tourism industry and has caused the National Association of Hotels and Restaurants (Asonahores) to issue a warning, for fear of a negative impact on the availability of flights to this country.

The oil bill closed out 2010 at US$3.464 billion, which represents a 31.1% increase in relation to 2009 when the imports cost the country US$2.641 billion, according to the preliminary report on the economy from the Central Bank.

Nevertheless, fuel consumption was 1,284,586,794 gallons in 2010 and just 1,297,482,705 gallons in 2009, according to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.

More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#7)