Filipino vendors hit by LPG
Street‑food vendors in Manila are raising prices and serving colder meals as surging LPG costs squeeze operating margins for small stalls. (scmp.com) Multiple reports describe vendors absorbing fuel shock and cutting service quality, illustrating how fuel disruptions hit microbusiness economics. (kten.com) (today.rtl.lu)
Manila street-food vendors are raising prices, lowering flames and serving less-hot meals as liquefied petroleum gas costs jump with the Middle East oil shock. (france24.com) Agence France-Presse reported from Manila on April 12 that vendor Eric Garcia had raised a bowl of pares to 65 pesos after fuel costs cut his daily earnings by a quarter. Garcia said an 11-kilogram tank that used to cost 870 pesos now costs 1,600 pesos and lasts about four days. (france24.com) The fuel squeeze is not limited to one stall. Manila Standard reported on April 6 that Luzon retail prices for an 11-kilogram liquefied petroleum gas tank had climbed to roughly 1,488 to 1,600 pesos after a final staggered increase of 16 pesos per kilogram. (manilastandard.net) Liquefied petroleum gas is the bottled cooking fuel used by many homes and curbside food carts because it burns cleanly and does not need a fixed gas line. In Manila’s street-food trade, a higher tank price shows up fast in stew bowls, fried snacks and the heat level of warming trays. (france24.com) The Philippines is exposed because it imports most of its liquefied petroleum gas. A Manila gas-store supervisor told Agence France-Presse that about 90 percent is imported, and the Department of Energy said on March 25 that national liquefied petroleum gas supply covered only 24 days, below the 30-day level it cited as an international benchmark. (france24.com) (gmanetwork.com) Officials have tied the pressure to the wider fuel shock after fighting in the Middle East disrupted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil and gas shipping route. That same shock has pushed up Philippine diesel, gasoline and kerosene prices, widening the hit beyond kitchens to transport and delivery costs. (gmanetwork.com) (manilastandard.net) National inflation data show how quickly the pressure is spreading through household budgets. The Philippine Statistics Authority said on April 7 that headline inflation accelerated to 4.1 percent in March 2026 from 2.4 percent in February, while the index for housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels rose 4.5 percent and restaurants and accommodation services rose 5.0 percent. (psa.gov.ph) For small vendors, the math is immediate: absorb the tank cost, charge a few pesos more, or cut the heat and risk colder food. In Manila, many are now doing all three at once. (france24.com)
