FUEL prices have increased, sending fears among Rwandans that the increase may trigger prices of other goods and services to also increase.The country heavily depends on fuel for lighting and running industries.A survey carried out in Kigali City indicates that petrol has increased by Frw19, diesel by Frw15 while the price of kerosene soared by Frw50 per litre.Petrol has increased to Frw636 per litre from the previous Frw617; diesel has increased from Frw605 to Frw620 while kerosene that used to be at Frw480 is now Frw530.Col. Dodo Twahirwa, who heads commuter taxis operators in the country, said on phone that they will no increase transport fares in the country.Some filling stations like Kobil, Total, SP, KLSS and Merez increased petrol prices by Frw20 per litre.Most fuel dealers attribute the increase to taxes increments. However fuel importers said that the increase in prices is a worldwide phenomenon.The New York Times reports that indicate that a barrel now cost $100.Regional papers BBC reports that oil prices have rebounded above $96 in Asian trading as concerns about global supplies linger.A barrel of US light crude was worth $96.46, up $1, having fallen to $95.46 on Thursday on pessimistic comments by Federal Reserve boss Ben Bernanke.His forecast for slower economic growth may have meant weaker demand as firms reined in spending, analysts said.But disruption to oil output in the North Sea from BP and ConocoPhillips rigs helped to support crude prices. ‘Tight market’ Platforms pumping more than 200,000 barrels of oil a day in the North Sea were closed due to bad weather, exacerbating concerns about the availability of crude.Prices hit a record high above $98 a barrel of Wednesday, leading many analysts to speculate that it was only a matter of time before the $100 mark was breached.But prices then fell back sharply after US crude inventory figures showed a smaller than expected weekly fall.The weaker dollar has been driving up oil prices as investors have been using the commodity as an alternative to holding dollars.“Markets have probably rethought how tight the market is and might be in the near term and that has caused an upward adjustment,” David Moore, a commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said of Friday’s price jump.Oil prices have now risen by 60 per cent this year but prices have still not reached a record high if inflation is taken into account.Adjusting for inflation, US light crude’s record peak of $101.70 came in 1980 against a backdrop of war between Iraq and Iran.The dollar’s current weakness has also seen prices of other commodities rise sharply, most notably gold, which is continuing near 27-year highs.Ends
