Mawlamyine, August (10)
The Mon State is witnessing a shortage of gasoline in the market as a result of high prices of fuel, the dealers told Than Lwin Times.
The price of 95 octane per litre was only about 1,700 kyats on August 6 jumped to around 2,000 kyats on August 9.
The price of premium diesel has increased from more than 2,000 kyats to almost 2,250 kyats per litre.
With the rise in the price of fuel, some stations have closed because they cannot afford to purchase enough fuel.
A fuel trader said that the military council’s restrictions on the dollar and the inability to buy as much oil as needed may lead to further oil shortages.
In Mon State, due to the military council’s control over the dollar in May, there was a shortage of fuel, and the people had to purchase fuel under a quota system.
According to fuel traders, shortages occur because they are waiting to purchase the fuel distributed by the military council since they cannot buy oil on the free market at the dollar price set by the military council.
The military leader, General Min Aung Hlaing, said on August 8 that he would reduce the import of oil and oil products from abroad amid the high demand for fuel in the market.
The dealers noted that if the military council does not meet the market demand and reduce the import of fuel, there will be more fuel shortages.
Myanmar can only produce about ten percent of its fuel needs domestically, and the remaining 90 percent is imported from abroad.
However, since the military takeover, the price of fuel has nearly tripled, resulting in frequently shortages in the country.
News – Than Lwin Times
