NAIROBI, Wed Dec. 14 – Pump prices were today revised down by up to Sh5 a litre following a drop in international crude oil prices and a strong shilling. In a statement, the Energy Regulatory Commission reduced pump prices for super petrol in Nairobi by Sh5.07 a litre to 119.06, diesel by Sh3.33 a litre to 110.97 and that of kerosene by Sh4.13 a litre to 87.92.
“In the past one month, the local currency has strengthened, relative to the US dollar, and this has impacted positively on the local pump prices,” said Kaburu Mwirichia, commission director-general of the ERC. It is the first price drop to be announced by the commission since it started regulating fuel prices in December last year. New prices are announced on the 14th day of every month.
The announcement comes at a time when inflation has climbed to 19.7 per cent, largely attributed to the rising costs of fuel. Last month’s announcement of an increase in pump prices sparked angry reactions with a some MPs calling for disbandment of the commission for failing to cushion consumers against escalating fuel prices.
Between October and November, the mean exchange rate improved by 8.2 per cent to Sh93.64 against the US dollar, from Sh101.96 per US dollar in October. It closed Wednesday’s trading at six-month high of Sh87.15 to the dollar. In turn, the average cost of imported super petrol decreased by one per cent, from $1069.44 a tonne in October to $1059.18 a tonne in November, while the cost of imported diesel decreased by 1.4 per cent from $982.88 a tonne to $969.10 a tonne during the same period.
However, the cost of imported kerosene went up by 1.5 per cent, from $1031.61 a tonne in October to $1046.97 a tonne in November
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