Petrobras raises gasoline prices at refineries by 7.4% – 01/24/2023 – Market

Petrobras will raise the average selling price of gasoline in its refineries by 7.4% as of this Wednesday (25). According to the state-owned company, the average price will go from R$ 3.08 to R$ 3.31 per liter.

It is the first readjustment after the inauguration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), who still has not been able to nominate his nominee, Senator Jean Paul Prates (PT-RN), in charge of the state-owned company. The last time Petrobras changed the price of gasoline was in early December, with a 6.1% cut.

The increase was already demanded by the market, given the high gaps in relation to international prices. Since the end of the year, with rare exceptions, Petrobras has been selling the product in the country at lower prices than abroad.

According to calculations by Abicom (Brazilian Association of Fuel Importers), at the opening of the market this Tuesday (24th) the average price of gasoline in the country’s refineries was 14%, or R$ 0.49 per liter, below the import parity, concept that simulates how much it would cost to bring the product from abroad.

That is, this fourth increase will not be enough to cover the gap. The Lula government, however, has stated that it will not follow the concept of import parity in the sale of fuels, since Brazil produces a large part of the volume it consumes.

In a note, Petrobras says that the increase “accompanies the evolution of reference prices and is consistent with Petrobras’ pricing practice, which seeks to balance its prices with the market, but without passing on cyclical volatility to domestic prices quotations and the exchange rate”.