Wang Zhengfa (Taxi driver in Beijing): The fuel prices have been raised three times in four months. I just cannot understand why the government raises fuel prices so frequently. When international crude oil prices fell to below $40 a barrel, the National Development and Reform Commission ordered fuel prices to drop in January and then imposed fuel surcharges, which pretty much offset the price reduction. It is reported that the international crude oil price is now at $70 a barrel. Why are China's refined oil prices higher than they were when the crude oil price in New York was above $140 a barrel last year?

I have to spend 50 yuan ($7.32) more for fuel a day since July 1. Before the price hike I could earn 3,000-4,000 yuan ($440-$586) a month. But now, I can only earn 1,500 to 2,500 yuan ($220-$360) a month. I have a family to raise. Life will be miserable if fuel prices are raised again.

Ye Tan (Chief economic commentator at National Business News): The market won't back such a huge hike in fuel prices, judging from the current supply and demand. For one thing, it is unsure yet how international crude oil prices will change in the future; for another, China's crude oil and gasoline stocks are huge for the time being.

I think consumers will vote with their feet. The two state-owned oil giants, PetroChina Co. and Sinopec Corp., have already raised fuel wholesale prices to the upper limit. But if the Chinese economy is still in the doldrums and international crude oil prices retreated from recent highs, then they will fall back to the level from which they were raised.

By the book

Niu Li (Energy expert at the State Information Center): The international crude oil prices have been soaring since the beginning of this year, especially in May and June. According to the fuel pricing scheme devised by the National Development and Reform Commission, China's gasoline and diesel retail prices will be adjusted when international crude oil prices rise or fall by a daily average of 4 percent over 22 straight working days. Before the latest adjustment, international crude oil prices had surged 22 percent over the previous 22 days, which naturally led to the fuel price hike.

In the past few months, the Central Government focused its regulatory efforts on maintaining economic growth, which had generated effective results. As we can see, the downward trend of the national economy has been curbed, and the economy is back on track. Therefore, the primary task now is to maintain growth, raise people's living standards and shift attention to overall restructuring. Economic growth alone is not a big problem. Instead, we should pay more attention to strategic reform objectives, such as energy conservation and emission reduction. Readjusting refined oil prices at a proper time is of vital importance to achieving these goals, because fuel prices are an important factor in balancing economic and social development.

Judging by the current macroeconomic environment, inflation is not a major concern at present. The consumer price index kept falling in the past four months in a row, while producer price index fell in six straight months. Meanwhile, it is widely expected the two inflation indicators will keep dropping in the next few months, which makes perfect timing for the fuel price increase as the readjustment won't bring huge inflationary pressure.

The recent fuel price increase will encourage refiner to expand production, reduce their losses and increase supplies of refined oil products in the market.

The fuel tax and consumption tax in our country do not take up a big proportion in the composition of China's refined oil prices, and that's why we are sensitive to crude oil price surges.

Li Daokui (Director of the Research Center on China and the World Economy at Tsinghua University): It is totally rational and necessary to raise China's refined oil prices given the international crude oil price surges. I expect crude oil prices will continue to rise, and so will China's fuel prices because our country is heavily reliant on imported oil. Consumers, car owners in particular, must be rational about the hikes.

Dong Xiucheng (Vice Dean of the School of Business Administration at Beijing University of Petroleum): China imports a huge amount of crude oil, giving rise to escalating fuel costs in the Chinese market. According to the current fuel pricing scheme, China's fuel prices will keep rising. But inflationary pressure is unlikely to mount as our economy is moving on smoothly. Therefore, ascending oil prices will not pose a major threat to the economic recovery in China for the time being. But in the long run, rising fuel prices might dampen economic growth.

Zhou Dadi (Director General Emeritus of the Energy Research Institute under the National Development and Reform Commission): In one month after China's second fuel price hike in this year on June 1, the price of crude oil traded in New York grew to around $70 a barrel from $50, recording a 40-percent increase. However, the June 30 adjustment saw an increase of less than 10 percent.