• 
• 
• 

 Anusorn Sangnimnuan, its president, said the government should help reduce the public burden as that would boost consumption and stimulate the economic recovery.

 "Diesel should not exceed Bt30 per litre, if that is to ensure no further burden to the public, the transport sector and goods prices," he said.

 Crude oil for September delivery fell as much as US$1.30, or 1.8 per cent, to $70.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Kuwait expects oil prices to stay between $70 and $80 a barrel until the end of this year on optimism about a global economic recovery, state-run KUNA news agency cited the country's oil minister as saying.

 Anusorn said that following the recent oil price volatility, it would be known on Wednesday if retail oil prices would be increased. Diesel is now near Bt29 per litre.

 He said global oil price resistance is now $73 a barrel. If the line is breached, it is likely that oil prices would remain high throughout the year.

The government plans to slash contribution from diesel oil sales to the Oil Fund, if retail diesel prices reach Bt30 per litre as a result of the recent spike in global oil prices.

 Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has sent a note to the Energy Ministry on this plan.

 "The government holds the Bt30 price as the trigger for additional measures to help the public. We're yet to consider the appropriateness. We need to accept that other consumer price indicators are still in the negative areas, which means that the public expenses does not remain too high," he said.