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Petrol prices coming down
PETROL companies yesterday announced that they would lower fuel prices from today.
Petrolina stated that the price of petrol would go down by two cents a litre after petrol companies and petrol station owners became embroiled in a dispute over the price of petrol.
The head of the Association of Petrol Station Owners, Pambinos Charalambous, explained that the owners should be the ones who determine the price, in order to avoid collusion between the companies.
In order for this to happen, he added, owners should be granted a greater profit margin so that they could raise or lower prices accordingly, in order to develop healthy competition, as seen in other European countries.
He also stated that petrol companies have the upper hand, and metaphorically spoke of petrol station owners as prisoners.
Responding, Director of Petrolina, Akis Lefkaritis, speaking on behalf of the petrol companies, said Cyprus was a free market but that the margins for price increases and decreases were small.
He added that if the petrol station owners got their way, prices would inevitably rise, especially in rural areas, where petrol stations are located further apart from one another.
Referring to Petrolina, Lefkaritis said that his station owners worked closely with company headquarters, in order for a unitary pricing policy to be implemented.
He described as “unacceptable” accusations that the petrol companies are running a cartel, saying that there are watchdogs in place to ensure this does not happen.
Last Thursday, senior energy official Solon Kassinis claimed that fuel prices were two to three cents higher than they should be. He questioned why petrol stations were all charging the same prices and called on the government to intervene to reduce them.
Lefkaritis said prices were managed according to the price of fuel on the day it was imported. If purchase prices were higher, fuel prices went up. Likewise, fuel prices went down when purchase prices went down. The Commerce Ministry was familiar with these proceedings and closely monitored import and retail prices, he said.
The Ministry on Saturday said that a drop in international oil prices would justify a reduction in the price of petrol on the island.
Bread prices to rise in February
BREAD will be dearer by 10 to 25 cents from February 1, the Bakers’ Association announced yesterday.
The head of the association, Gavriel Kazazis yesterday explained that the increases were considered inevitable due to the international increase in wheat prices.
He reminded that increases would have been imposed in December but were averted due to a request by the Commerce Minister.
“The increase was to be imposed from December, but following a request by the Commerce Minister for the changeover to the euro not to coincide with the increases, bakers and wheat producers agreed that until the end of January, they would not make increase”, Kazazis said.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2008
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