Sinopec, CNPC suspend oil wholesale
Updated: 2007-08-02 17:31
Two oil giants, China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), suspended wholesale oil sales in some regions but kept retail price stable, according to today's the Beijingnews.
Wholesale supplies of 0-octane gasoline, 93-octane gasoline, and 0-octane diesel in the Shanghai market have been stopped roundly, and wholesale of 90-octane gasoline and 0-octane diesel from Sinopec have been postponed for public consumption in Xiamen City of East China's Fujian Province.
In Fuzhou City, capital of Fujian Province, the wholesale price of 93-octane gasoline from Sinopec climbed to 6,220 yuan per ton, up by 80 yuan, according to figures on the website, www.oilboss.cn.
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Wholesale prices of gasoline and diesel in Beijing are comparatively stable, although supplies of some oil products are limited.
Compared with the soaring wholesale prices, retail prices of oil products are kept stable in all three cities.
The retail price of 93-octane gasoline remains at 4.9 yuan while 97-octane is at 5.22 yuan, said an employee at Taoranting gas station in Xuanwu District of Beijing.
"The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) is afraid of increasing gasoline retail price because it could easily affect the down-stream sectors, such as transportations and effect the consumer price index (CPI)," said an insider.
Last week, 13 institutions predicated that the CPI in the third quarter would rise by a record high of 4.5 percent, and policymakers are increasingly worried about how to strike a balance between stabilizing prices and limiting undue market intervention.
As wholesale prices soar, the gap between wholesale and retail prices has narrowed.
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