The price of diesel has dropped below that of gasoline at some gas stations in Romania, a rare occurrence in the local fuel market and a first recorded after the outbreak of the conflict between Israel and Iran. At Rompetrol stations, standard diesel now costs 9.34 lei/liter, while gasoline remains at 9.38 lei/liter.
According to an analysis conducted by Profit.ro, the difference emerged after the Kazakh company reduced the price of diesel by 25 bani per liter in recent days, without changing the price of gasoline. On Tuesday, diesel was further discounted by 10 bani/liter.
Usually, diesel is more expensive than gasoline in Romania because the country is a net importer of diesel and a net exporter of gasoline. Even in periods when prices have come close, diesel has generally remained a few bani above gasoline.
Oil prices have decreased after signals of detente between the US and Iran
The decrease in diesel prices comes against the backdrop of cheaper oil on international markets. On Monday, Brent crude oil prices fell by approximately 5%, to nearly $98 per barrel, amid information suggesting that the US and Iran were nearing an agreement.
The European fuel market reacted differently for the two types of fuel. Since the beginning of May, spot prices for diesel have dropped by about $44 per ton, while gasoline has increased by approximately $127 per ton after the decline recorded at the beginning of the month.
Significant differences between companies
Rompetrol is the first major company to sell diesel cheaper than gasoline, but other networks have also reduced the difference between the two types of fuel.
Lukoil and Socar have also lowered diesel prices by 10 bani per liter, but at the same time increased the price of gasoline by the same amount. Thus, at Lukoil stations, gasoline has reached 9.38 lei/liter, while diesel is priced at 9.64 lei/liter. At Socar, gasoline costs 9.34 lei/liter, and diesel 9.59 lei/liter.
On the other hand, market leader OMV Petrom, as well as the Hungarian group MOL Group, have kept their prices unchanged for now.