BELIZE CITY, Wed. July 24, 2019– Belizean motorists will have to dig a little deeper in their pockets in the wake of a government press release announcing new increases in fuel prices.

The Ministry of Finance release announced that effective midnight tonight, July 24, there will be increases in the prices of regular gasoline, diesel and kerosene.

The price of regular gasoline will increase by 18 cents, jumping from $10.37 to $10.55 per gallon. The price of diesel oil will increase by 12 cents, from $9.96 to $10.08 per gallon, and there will be an increase of 26 cents in the price of kerosene, which will jump from $7.45 to $7.71 per gallon.

The price of premium gasoline will remain at $10.63 per gallon.

As was the case with the last few fuel price increases, it appears that government just slapped on the announcement of new prices on a form letter, because the stated reason for the price increase remains the same:  “the current demand and supply conditions of crude oil in the international petroleum market and the fluctuations in the acquisition price of refined fuel products in the countries from which Belize obtains it supplies.”

The press release also includes another statement that has become a staple of the Ministry of Finance: “The Government of Belize is monitoring the price movements and supply conditions closely and will work with the fuel industry to safeguard the pump prices paid by Belizean consumers.”

That line has increasingly become a government catchword to justify the cruel increases, even when crude oil prices are low on the world market.