Drawing a Roadmap for Oil Pricing Reform

Kojima, Masami

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: ADVERSE CONSEQUENCES;    ADVERSE EFFECTS;    AGRICULTURE;    AIR POLLUTION;    APPROACH;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-6450
RP-ID  :  WPS6450

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

In 2011, the median oil imports rose to5 percent of gross domestic product for net importers. Inthe past several years, many governments have not passedthrough the world oil price increases to consumers fully. Asa sign of divergent pricing policies, the retail prices ofgasoline, diesel, and cooking gas in January 2013 varied bya factor of 190, 250, and 70, respectively, acrossdeveloping countries. Policies to keep oil product priceslow to benefit the economy and protect the poor have had anumber of unintended negative consequences, includingflourishing corruption in the oil sector and entrenchment ofmonopoly operators or inefficient firms through whichsubsidies are channeled, stifling competition and raisingcosts. The path to market-based pricing depends on thestarting conditions: the gap between current andmarket-based price levels, the level of public awarenessabout the extent of departure from market prices, the degreeof market concentration and competition in downstream oil,the subsidy delivery mechanism where subsidies are provided,the robustness of social service delivery, and the perceivedcredibility of the government. The evidence presented inthis paper suggests that pricing reform often does not havea clear end and should instead be viewed as a continuousprocess of adjustment and search for mechanisms that takeinto account the country's institutions and politicalsystem, and the oil sector's market structure,infrastructure, and history.