Economic expert and Secretary of the General Association of Petrol and Gas Distribution Stations Owners, Hashim Aqel, forecasts fuel prices in Jordan will increase in the start of May. His remarks came during his guest appearance in the evening news on Roya TV on Saturday.

He noted that the lifting of the government subsidy on kerosene will save the treasury JD 6-7 million yearly but the move will likely result in a three percent increase in petrol prices and five percent increase in diesel prices.

The Jordanian government has maintained that the fuel pricing committee uses the rate of change in oil prices for a period of 30 days before determining domestic fuel prices.

Aqel said that even though it was simple a better one could be adopted. He proposed that instead of using a monthly average of global prices, the government should use the price of fuel on the day shipments are unloaded in the port of Aqaba.

According to the expert’s analysis, fuel prices will remain on the rise as yields decrease; He indicated that the US is likely to become a leading nation in shale oil extraction and the rising prices will justify the high cost of extracting it making it an economically viable decision.