Overview
- The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced on Friday that it is preparing a Fiscal/Price Stabilization Fund to temper how global crude-price spikes translate into domestic fuel costs.
- The proposed averaging-and-recovery design would apply an intermediate reference price during price surges and reclaim resources later when international prices decline.
- MEF estimates the mechanism could reduce retail fuel charges by up to S/1 per liter in illustrative scenarios, though the figure is an estimate pending final calibration.
- Officials say the fund is intended to be temporary and fiscally neutral if well designed, and to complement the central bank’s tools so monetary policy would not need to tighten because of fuel-driven inflation.
- The move responds to higher crude linked to tensions in the Persian Gulf and other disruptions, and MEF notes fuel increases have pushed annual inflation to about 4% from a 1.5% baseline without the fuel effect.