The price of gasoline at Brazilian stations rose for the second week in a row, according to a weekly survey by the ANP (Agência Nacional do Petróleo, Gás e Biocombustíveis). This time, the high was 0.4%, to R$ 4.88 per liter.
The streak of rises breaks a 15-week down cycle that began with federal and state tax cuts passed by Congress in late June and fueled by price cuts at refineries.
The rise comes on the eve of the second round of elections and reflects increases in the Mataripe Refinery, the largest private producer of fuels in the country, and in the price of anhydrous ethanol, which represents 27% of the mixture sold at gas stations.
Despite the high lags in relation to international quotations, Petrobras has been giving in to government pressure to hold its prices at least until the vote on the 30th.
At the opening of the market this Friday (21), the average price of gasoline in Brazilian refineries was 9%, or R$ 0.31 per liter, below international prices, according to Abicom (Brazilian Association of Fuel Importers). For diesel, the lag is 6%, or R$ 0.43 per liter.
This week, the price of gasoline rose in 18 states, the ANP reported. The biggest increases were verified in Rondônia (5.61%), Alagoas (5.21%) and Piauí (3.88%). At the stations in the Federal District, where there was an increase last week, the price dropped 1.98% this week.
According to the ANP, nine states already have an average gasoline price above R$5 per liter, four more than the previous week: Bahia, Rio Grande do Norte, Acre, Tocantins, Amazonas, Piauí, Rondônia, Alagoas and Sergipe.
The most expensive gasoline in Brazil was found in São Paulo, at R$6.99. The cheapest was also found in São Paulo, at R$ 4.15.
The price of hydrous ethanol also continued to rise, closing the week at R$ 3.54 per liter, an increase of 2.3% compared to the previous week. It is the third consecutive week of increase, following the prices in the mills.
According to the ANP, diesel oil was sold, on average, at R$ 6.59 per liter, up 1.2% over the previous week. It was the first increase after 16 weeks of decline.
Petrobras has not changed the price of diesel since the 19th, when there was a 5.8% cut. Gasoline, on the other hand, has not been adjusted since the beginning of September, when the state-owned company promoted an average reduction of 7%.
Abicom argues that it is time to raise prices, since international quotations have stopped at new levels. But the market does not expect any movement until the elections.
The fall in fuel prices was used in the first round as one of the trump cards of the campaign for the reelection of President Jair Bolsonaro (PL), whose image was eroded by the escalation of inflation in the first half of the year.
Amid the escalation, Bolsonaro appointed Caio Paes de Andrade to command the state-owned company, with the aim of “giving new dynamics” to fuel prices. When oil dropped, the company announced price cuts almost weekly. At high, it has not manifested.
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