Kenya has cut the retail pump prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene to reflect the fall in the cost of importing oil products, the Energy Regulatory Commission said late Sunday.
Fuel prices affect inflation in Kenya, which relies heavily on diesel for transport, power generation and agriculture and kerosene as a household cooking and lighting fuel.
The ERC cut the cost of gasoline to Shilling 111.64 ($1.26)/liter, down Shillings 4.98, effective from midnight Sunday.
The price of diesel was reduced by 62 cents to Shillings 102.36 and that of kerosene by Shillings 1.42 to Shillings 81.65.
The government has been reviewing retail fuel prices monthly since 2010, taking into account fluctuations in the international market and the shilling-dollar exchange rate and cost of freight among other factors.
The ERC attributed the reduction in prices to the depreciation of the Kenya shilling against the dollar, which cut import costs.
Gasoline import costs declined 6.97% from $1,076.74/mt in July to $1001.64/mt in August.
The cost of importing diesel fell 0.77% from $925.40/mt in July to $918.30/mt in August.
The average cost of importing kerosene decreased by 3.45% from $990.75/mt in July to $956.53/mt in August.
The country depends on oil products imported from the Middle East and India after Kenya Petroleum Refineries Ltd.'s Mombasa refinery was shut on September 4, 2013.
