Gov’t feels the pinch, allows fuel prices to rise

It appears tonight that prisoners are not the only thing on the loose, as according to a release from Belmopan fuel prices are about to escape their bonds as well. Government states that its policy of absorbing ever-higher acquisition costs of gasoline by reducing taxes has kept prices at the pump stable and contributed to long-term economic growth. But that policy has also resulted in lost revenue of over 2 million dollars, a price which government says it can no longer afford to pay. While the release did not say how much gasoline prices will be going up, the rise is expected to be steep and soon, perhaps coinciding with a recently arrived tanker shipment. World fuel prices have been rising for the last several months owing to higher crude prices and increased refining costs. In the long run crude prices are expected to recede but that offers little immediate comfort to truckers, taxi drivers or others who depend on the internal combustion engine for livelihood.