Gasoline pries top six dollar mark

If you haven’t filled up at the pumps since Saturday night, when you do go to the gas station expect a shock when it’s time to pay the bill. Premium gasoline has gone up an additional forty-three cents per gallon, from five dollars and eighty-five cents to six, twenty-eight. Regular has risen an extra forty-five cents breaking the six dollar barrier, and now stands at six dollars and five cents in Belize City, and even more in the districts. Needless to say, motorists were not amused.

Ann-Marie Williams

“What do you think of the rise in gas prices?”

Motorist #1

“That will affect us bad, we’ll have to raise the price of the taxi. The people don’t want to pay six dollars, I don’t know how much they’ll have to pay now?”

Motorist #2

“It’s definitely inevitable, prices go up when the gas go up. Everybody pass it on.”

Ann-Marie Williams

“You just said you can’t believe it.”

Motorist #2

“Yeah, I’m surprise, it’s suck a large jump. There’s nothing much I can do about it.”

According to a government press release, there’s nothing much they can do either, as the rise in prices reflects the sharp increase in crude oil prices, refining costs and higher profit margins by the oil companies. The release continued by saying that government has been adjusting the Revenue Replacement Duty to keep the pump price of fuel stable over the last two and a half years, and this has resulted in a huge loss of income to the Treasury, while adversely affecting the balance of payments. As a result, government says it can no longer absorb the higher acquisition costs of gasoline. Instead, as in most of the world, consumers will feel the full effects of any fluctuations in the price of fuel, whether up or down. Prices of diesel and kerosene, however, due to their direct impact of productive sector, will remain stable for now.