Fuel prices in Thailand further drop

BANGKOK, May 8 (TNA) - Retail fuel prices in Thailand will further drop as of early Wednesday morning, thanks to a new move of local oil traders, led by PTT Public Company Limited (PTT), the country's largest petroleum firm. PTT announced Tuesday that it would further cut its retail benzene or gasoline and diesel prices by 50 satang (Bt0.50) per liter and its retail E85 price by 30 satang (Bt0.30) per liter, effective from the dawn of May 9, after world oil prices have considerably dropped since last Friday, amid weaker economic data released by the United States and concerns over the lingering debt crisis in Europe with the price of the US West Texas crude oil having dropped to below 100 dollars per barrel. The PTT decision was then followed by Bangchak Petroleum Public Company Limited (Bangchak), Thailand's another state-supported petroleum firm, and was believed to have been later follow suit by other local oil traders. PTT Executive Vice President for the Oil Business Group Saran Rankasiri told reporters that Tuesday's decision was PTT's voluntary move, not an instruction from the government, to ease people's burden on rising costs of living, noting that PTT had earlier reduced its retail prices of benzene and diesel by 50 satang (Bt0.50) and 30 satang (Bt0.30) per liter respectively since last Saturday, resulting in PTT's total cut in its retail benzene and diesel prices by one baht and 60 satang (Bt0.60) per liter respectively over the past five days. Meanwhile, Thaioil Public Company Limited or Thai Oil, a PTT affiliate and a largest Thai petroleum refinery, projected that the British Brent crude oil and the US West Texas crude oil should move around 110-117 US dollars per barrel and 97-105 US dollars per barrel respectively this week, acknowledging that the declining world oil prices are also caused by an increased oil supply from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), including Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Libya, which rose to the highest level in three years last month. (TNA)