BY: ANGELICA ARQUERO
Christopher has been a jeepney driver for almost a decade, plying the route from Baguio to Poblacion in Tuba, Benguet.
Even though he doesn’t have a family to support yet, he struggles to stretch his 500 pesos daily earnings.
After the series of fuel price hikes in January, he says the rollback this first week of February hasn’t made much of a difference.
The same goes for taxi driver Raymond, who sacrifices not just his income but also time with his family.
Instead of going home early, he works overtime just to cover his boundary and have enough for fuel the next day.
Aside from gasoline, LPG prices will also rise by 60 centavos per liter this week.
This means a 7 pesos to 8 pesos increase for an 11-kilogram LPG tank.
For people like Tatay Benjamin, who runs a small eatery, this is a heavy burden.
Their 11-kg LPG tank only lasts for two days, so from the previous 860 pesos, they now pay 900 pesos per tank.
Despite the price hikes, retailer Nanay Leah hasn’t increased her prices, saying it’s her way of helping her customers.
According to reports, fuel price fluctuations are due to higher tariffs imposed by the United States on products from Canada and Mexico.
