Next week is expected to bring relief in fuel prices. The reduction should occur on Monday, affecting both diesel and gasoline, with a more significant decrease in diesel.
According to the Automobile Club of Portugal (ACP), the price of gasoline is expected to decrease by 1.5 cents, while diesel will see a reduction of 3.5 cents.
“If these forecasts for the next week are confirmed, the average price of simple diesel should drop to 1.551 euros per liter, while that of simple 95 gasoline will be set at 1.691 euros per liter,” stated the ACP.
These calculations account for the fact that, according to the Directorate-General for Energy and Geology (DGEG), the average price of a liter of diesel in Portugal was 1.586 euros on Friday (August 8), while gasoline was priced at 1.706 euros.
The ACP also noted that the “forecasts are based on the assumption of the continuation of extraordinary tax reduction measures applied by the government to mitigate price increases.”
“The measures in place include a reduction in the Tax on Petroleum Products (ISP) and compensation for the additional VAT revenue,” it highlighted.
How is crude oil performing in international markets?
The price of Brent crude for October delivery fell by 0.69% to 66.43 dollars on Thursday in London’s futures market, marking the sixth consecutive session of decline. North Sea crude, a benchmark for Europe, closed the session on the Intercontinental Exchange at 0.46 dollars below the 66.89 dollars it had closed at on Wednesday.
Brent continues to decline for the sixth consecutive session and is inching closer to the 65-dollar per barrel threshold after the Kremlin announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump in the coming days.
The market is closely watching this meeting, which would be the first summit between the leaders of the two countries since 2021, hoping it may lead to a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine and the lifting of sanctions on Russia and its oil infrastructure.
Despite the summit, Trump plans to proceed with secondary tariffs he threatened to impose on India and China, the main importers of Russian oil.
The U.S. president signed an order on Wednesday imposing an additional 25% tariff on India’s purchases of oil from Moscow, while tariffs on China remain pending.
The pessimistic sentiment had already weighed on Brent oil prices after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) alliance, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, decided over the weekend to increase its crude supply starting in September, raising concerns about a potential oversupply amidst weak demand.
According to an announcement during its meeting last Sunday, the group will raise its production by 547,000 barrels per day (bpd) starting September 1, completing the return of 2.2 million barrels per day removed from the market in 2023.
