By close of business last Thursday, the price of crude had dropped by a further 22 percent from the November peg.
This has raised the prospect of a significant price cut in the forthcoming review in January.
Given that the regulator is normally very quick to raise prices in tandem with any rise in crude price, common sense now demands that this time the reverse should apply with the fall in prices.
Kenyans have reason to be optimistic about the falling global crude oil prices, which touched a 15-month low of $53 a barrel last week. Consumers are now keenly watching the Energy and Regulatory Commission as it prepares its mid-January pump price review.
By close of business last Thursday, the price of crude had dropped by a further 22 percent from the November peg. This has raised the prospect of a significant price cut in the forthcoming review in January.
Given that the regulator is normally very quick to raise prices in tandem with any rise in crude price, common sense now demands that this time the reverse should apply with the fall in prices. The ERC must be reminded that Kenyans expect nothing but the announcement of pump prices that truly reflect the current trends in crude pricing.
The December monthly pricing of crude was based on the 17 percent drop in the price of crude from $82 a barrel in October to $68 in November. The regulator subsequently cut the cost of a litre of petrol in Nairobi by Sh4.57 to Sh3.54 and that of diesel by 55 cents to Sh112.28 and kerosene by Sh6.61 to Sh105.22.
Taxes, oil marketer margins and levies aside, there must certainly be a significant price relief at the pump come January.
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Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.
