According to Villagrán these variations take place in the context that the Central Government temporarily cancelled the taxes on gasoline; one is the Contribución al Transporte (CONTRANS) which is equivalent to US$0.26 and US$0.02 of the Fondo de Estabilización para el Fomento Económico (FEFE) tax.

The increases could range from US$0.27 in gasoline and US$0.35 in diesel.

The expert said that the increases will be added to the current prices. For example, a gallon of super gasoline is currently worth US$4.31 and if it increases US$0.27, the value for the next fortnight would be US$4.58.

The gallon of regular gasoline costs US$4.15 and may increase US$0.27 with a probable value for the next fortnight of US$4.42 and diesel may even be worth US$4.49.

Villagrán warns that the alternatives offered by the Government, still come to alleviate; but, as long as the conflict and the international variations continue, prices could go up.

Likewise, yesterday the price of a barrel of Texas crude oil was US$102.52, while a barrel of Brent crude oil is at US$102.52.

In Europe, it is expected that the trading price of a barrel of crude oil will not go below US$95 until next august.