Expect more cutbacks on the price of cooking gas this month.

Thus, declared Arnel Ty, president of a group of independent cooking gas retailers who called themselves the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers Association (LPGMA).

“The trend in the world market is going down, and we will follow that trend. There will be more rollbacks this month,” said Ty.

The LPGMA head’s pronouncement came at the heels of a P0.50-per- kilo rollback enforced by the group last Thursday, which translated to a P5.50-mark down for every regular cylinder of cooking gas. A regular LPG cylinder weighs 11 kilos.

Ty said that consumers can expect another price cut “as early as next week.” Cooking gas from LPGMA member-brands currently have a suggested retail price (SRP) of P554.

Thursday’s rollback was the 10th so far this year by the LPGMA. Since January, the group, composed of retailers such as Island Gas, Regasco Gas, Pinnacle Gas, Cat Gas, M-Gas, Omni Gas and Nation Gas, has reduced prices by an accumulated P61 per tank.

Last Friday morning, major LPG players Pilipinas Shell, Petron Corp., and Total Philippines slashed the price of their cooking gas products (Shellane, Gasul, and Total Gas, respectively) by a seemingly more significant P2 per kilo, or P22 per regular tank.

Like the LPGMA, the big oil companies cited the downward trend in world contract prices as reason for the adjustment.

But Ty said that the major oil firms were still retailing their LPG tanks at much higher prices. “If you look around, you’ll notice that their prices still reach over P600 per cylinder,” he pointed out.

Rounds conducted by the Manila Bulletin-/Tempo at several Shell and Petron gas stations in Metro Manila showed that they were retailing LPG tanks between P560 and P580. Another oil giant, Chevron Philippines (formerly Caltex), sold cooking gas cylinders for as much as P620 a tank.