(Source: "Economic Daily" 2026-03-23)

At 24:00 on March 23, domestic refined oil prices will usher in a new round of adjustment.

The National Development and Reform Commission announced that since the price adjustment of domestic refined oil products on March 9, affected by the intensification of the conflict between the United States and Iran, crude oil prices in the international market have risen sharply, especially in the Middle East, crude oil prices have hit record highs. In order to mitigate the impact of the abnormal rise in international oil prices, reduce the burden on downstream users, and ensure the smooth operation of the economy and social people's livelihood, temporary control measures have been adopted on domestic refined oil prices on the basis of maintaining the current price mechanism framework. According to calculations based on the current price mechanism, starting from 24:00 on March 23, the maximum retail prices of domestic gasoline and diesel (standard products) should be increased by 2,205 yuan and 2,120 yuan per ton respectively. After the regulation, they were actually increased by 1,160 yuan and 1,115 yuan.

According to the domestic refined oil price mechanism regulations, the maximum retail price of gasoline and diesel in my country is based on the price of crude oil in the international market and is adjusted every 10 working days.

"This mechanism has three key points."Professor Dong Xiucheng of the w88 casinoIndicates, first, a package. Domestic gasoline and diesel prices are linked to the average price of a basket of international crude oils, and price adjustments are affected by the prices of multiple international crude oils rather than one. Second, the average price. The price adjustment range is not simply determined by the changes in international crude oil prices at a certain point in time or on certain days, but depends on the comparison of the average price of a basket of international crude oil in the 10 working days before the price adjustment and the average price in the 10 working days before the last price adjustment. Third, interval regulation. When the price of a basket of international crude oil is higher than US$130 per barrel or lower than US$40 per barrel 10 working days before the price adjustment, the state will take price control measures. When operating between 40 and 130 US dollars, domestic refined oil prices will adjust normally according to the mechanism, rising when they should rise and falling when they should fall.

Recently, affected by the intensification of the conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, the price of crude oil in the international market has risen sharply. The price increase in various regions is generally more than 40%. In particular, the price of crude oil in the Middle East has rapidly risen to more than 150 US dollars per barrel, setting new historical highs and rising by more than 130% compared with before the conflict. my country is a major oil importer, with more than 70% of crude oil extracted from outside. The rise in international crude oil prices directly increases my country's import and oil consumption costs. This time, the state has taken temporary control measures on the price of refined oil. Domestic gasoline and diesel prices have increased by 1,045 yuan and 1,005 yuan per ton, which is equivalent to the national average gasoline and diesel price increases of about 0.85 yuan per liter. For private cars, if the fuel tank is 50-60 liters, you can save 40-50 yuan by filling up a tank of fuel. For large truck drivers, if the fuel tank is 400-600 liters, you can save 300-500 yuan by filling up a tank of fuel.

“This move by the state is a powerful measure to deal with the abnormal fluctuations in international oil prices. It fully demonstrates the advantages of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics and plays an important role in ensuring the smooth operation of the domestic economy.”Dong Xiuchengrepresents.

If international crude oil prices continue to rise sharply in the future, what regulatory measures will be taken?Dong Xiuchengstated that if the average price of a basket of international crude oil continues to rise sharply, exceeding US$130 per barrel (the corresponding average retail price of domestic 92-proof gasoline is about slightly higher than 10 yuan per liter), the upper limit of price regulation will be triggered. For the part exceeding the upper limit, the maximum retail price of domestic gasoline and diesel will not increase or increase less. At the same time, in order to stabilize supply, the state may adopt some fiscal and tax support policies. Judging from past situations, the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022 triggered a sharp rise in international oil prices. The state made it clear at that time that when international oil prices exceeded the regulatory upper limit of US$130 per barrel, domestic refined oil prices would no longer increase in the short term (no more than two months), and periodic subsidies would be provided to oil refining companies.

The National Development and Reform Commission stated that it will guide refined oil production and sales companies to make every effort to organize and dispatch refined oil production to ensure market supply, and will cooperate with relevant departments to increase market supervision and inspection, strictly investigate and deal with violations of laws and regulations such as failure to implement national price policies, and effectively maintain market order and protect consumer interests.

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