China will raise retail oil prices from Thursday to adapt to warming global markets, the country's top economic planner announced on Wednesday.
The prices of gasoline and diesel will rise by 210 yuan (32 U.S. dollars) and 200 yuan per tonne, respectively, according to a statement from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).
This is the third straight rise this year due to a mild recovery in international crude prices, and the biggest hike so far this year.
With the latest adjustment, gasoline and diesel prices have gone up by 355 yuan and 340 yuan, respectively, since the beginning of this year.
Under the current mechanism, China adjusts domestic prices of refined oil products when crude prices translate into a change of more than 50 yuan per tonne for gasoline and diesel for a period of 10 working days, except when international prices go below 40 U.S. dollars or above 130 U.S. dollars a barrel.
The NDRC said it will closely monitor the effects of the pricing mechanism and improve the method in response to changes in the global markets.
