KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister for Energy, Science, Telecommunications and Transport, Daryl Vaz, says international oil prices have increased in recent weeks due to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and noted that the extent of any local impact of this increase will depend on how sustained these international price movements are.

“It would be remiss of me to not mention the present crisis in the Middle East and its potential effects on Jamaica’s fuel economy. International oil prices have increased in recent weeks due to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. However, it is important to understand that crude oil and finished petroleum products are traded in separate markets, and movements in crude oil prices do not automatically or proportionally translate into local pump prices,” Vaz said.

He was speaking during a post-Cabinet press briefing on Wednesday.

The energy minister noted that the pricing mechanism used by Jamaica’s state-owned oil refinery Petrojam also helps to mitigate full exposure to sudden price shocks.

“The extent of any local impact will depend on how sustained these international price movements are,” Vaz said.

The minister said Petrojam continues to closely monitor changes in the United States Gulf Coast Reference (USGC) for finished petroleum products, which serves as the primary pricing benchmark for the region and determines Petrojam’s ex-refinery prices.

He said based on early analysis of the USGC reference, fuel prices have been trending upward in apparent response to the current US–Iran tensions.

“We will continue to assess developments carefully and keep the public informed,” Vaz said.