Petron Raises Prices by 35 Centavos

August 24, 1999 PSE CIRCULAR FOR BROKERS NO. 2096-99 23 August 1999 PETRON RAISES PRICES BY 35 CENTAVOS At 12:01 a.m. today, we implemented an increase in our product prices of an average of 35 centavos per liter. We regret that we have to do this, because we pride ourselves on being a company that is sensitive to public needs. Unfortunately, we cannot hold it off any longer as we have been doing for the past couple of weeks. We are compelled by the continuous increase in our crude costs, which have risen by around $4.00 per barrel since June. As is known to many, the oil-producing nations have banded together to tighten the supply of oil in the world market. As a result, oil prices have risen at an unprecedented rate in a matter of six months. The Dubai-Oman benchmark, which is the basis for pricing Middle East crude supplies to the Far East has more than doubled from around $10.00 per barrel in February to over $20.00 last week. Although we are under great pressure from our higher costs, we will continue to try our best to keep our price adjustments moderate in order to minimize their impact on the public and on the economy.