<div id="readability-page-1"><div>China-headquartered oil and chemical company Sinopec caught up on the diesel surge, raising its posted price for diesel by 21 cents on Tuesday (March 31) morning.Its move follows that of Shell's 20-cent diesel hike over the weekend, and that of Caltex, Esso and SPC on Monday. As with the other major fuel companies in Singapore, Sinopec kept its petrol prices unchanged.Diesel prices here first started to surpass the price of 95-octane petrol on March 12 with Caltex and Shell raising their respective posted price for diesel to $3.38.On that day, the price of 95-octane petrol was recorded at $3.35 at both fuel companies.Following the latest round of diesel hike by Sinopec, the price of diesel now ranges from $3.92 at SPC to $4.13 at Caltex, Esso and Shell.Sinopec now holds the middle ground at $3.93 per litre of diesel.<h2>Small diesel vehicle population but significant impact</h2>Even though diesel-only vehicles are only 15.6 per cent of the total vehicle population in Singapore, they form 85 per cent of goods vehicles here.These vehicles are used heavily in logistics — ranging from delivery of parcels to the daily resupply of ingredients at food stalls, and the transportation of materials and supply for the construction, manufacturing, and processing sectors.<img height="1571" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.asiaone.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Goods-Vehicles-Diesel-Prices.jpg?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="3000" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.asiaone.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Goods-Vehicles-Diesel-Prices.jpg"/>At some point the higher operating costs for transportation may be passed on by businesses to consumers, driving up the costs of food and goods.But some may not be able to do so due to contractual reasons.Small and medium enterprises, accounting for 99 per cent of businesses in Singapore and hiring about 70 per cent of the workforce, will therefore see sustained increases in their operating costs which will in turn impact their profit margins and sustainability. On social media, users have increasingly been reacting to reports of diesel price hikes with concern, even though most say they do not drive or own a diesel-only vehicle.Reacting to Shell's increase on Sunday, Nicholas Neo wrote: &#34;When diesel (price) is affected, non-diesel vehicle drivers/car owners will be affected big time too. The commercial vans and lorries are the ones delivering your packages, groceries and foods.&#34;His views were echoed by user Gino Goh who wrote: &#34;Our essential items are all delivered by big lorries using diesel. So, all our food, vegetable, drinks prices will definitely increase in time to come.&#34;&#34;The government can consider giving business owners with diesel vehicles a one-time road tax rebate this year?&#34; asked user James Tan, though others have quickly pointed out that taxpayers will be the ones footing the bill for any form of subsidy or rebate.The issue is expected to be discussed at the next Parliament sitting on April 7. <h2>Oil prices up</h2>Brent crude, the international standard, was priced at nearly US$113 at the time of this article's publication.It is expected to trend upwards later in the day amidst threats by US President Donald Trump to &#34;obliterate&#34; Iran energy and oil plants after reports that a Kuwait-flagged oil tanker was hit by an Iranian strike.<img height="742" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.asiaone.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Kharg-Island.jpeg?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="1080" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.asiaone.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Kharg-Island.jpeg"/>This latest development comes as Trump openly mused about seizing Iran's Kharg Island oil terminal on Monday.Meanwhile, thousands of US Army paratroopers have arrived in the Middle East as a build-up intensifies.editor@asiaone.com No part of this article can be reproduced without the permission of AsiaOne.</div></div>

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Sinopec has raised its diesel price by 21 cents, following similar hikes by Shell and other fuel companies in Singapore. Diesel prices now range from $3.92 to $4.13 per litre, with Sinopec priced at $3.93. Despite diesel vehicles making up only 15.6% of the vehicle population, they account for 85% of goods vehicles, impacting logistics and potentially increasing costs for consumers. The issue is expected to be discussed in Parliament on April 7, amidst rising oil prices due to geopolitical tensions.

Sinopec hikes diesel price by 21 cents amidst rising consumer concerns