MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic managers on Thursday called off their plan to suspend the next round of oil tax increase next year, citing the recent drop in world crude prices. To combat surging prices, the Duterte administration said it would suspend an increase in oil taxes scheduled to be levied in January next year. “The recommendation comes in light of the favorable outlook in world oil prices, where the Dubai crude oil prices have gone down by 14 percent from an average of $79 per barrel in October down to $68 per barrel so far in November,” Dominguez said. But global oil prices have been declining since the start of October, when it hit highs not seen since 2014 and when oil traders were forecasting prices to reach $100 a barrel. According to the central bank, delaying the latest excise tax hike on fuel in whole 2019 could shave 0.2 percentage points off inflation next year.

Source: Philippine Star November 29, 2018 09:36 UTC