The CNMI saw its first fuel price increase of the year, with Mobil Oil Marianas leading the way by raising its prices late Wednesday afternoon by 10 cents.

Mobil Oil Marianas implemented the 10-cent increase at around 4:15pm Wednesday. Shell Marianas is expected to follow the rise in gas prices.

With the increase, Mobil now charges $5.36 per gallon for its Extra fuel, up from $5.26. Mobil also increased its Supreme fuel from $5.71 per gallon to $5.81 while diesel is now $5.73 per gallon.

This comes after months of gradual decreases in fuel prices, the last of which was back in December 2023, when gas prices went down from $5.36 per gallon to $5.26.

Since the end of September 2023, fuel prices have been seeing a steady, continuous drop.

The downtrend came after a string of increases.

Since this is the first increase of the year, it is still too early to determine the trend in fuel prices.

According to a local gas attendant, it’s normal to see a string of increases in the beginning of the year as people return from the holiday season and more cars return to the road.

A 30-year-old motorist said she just hopes gas prices don’t get ridiculously high this year.

“I think everyone expected gas prices to increase sometime. I just hope prices don’t get too high as people are still struggling,” she said.

Fuel prices in the CNMI continue to increase steadily, with local oil companies raising prices by another 10 cents yesterday.

Shell Marianas is once again leading the way after it raised its prices yesterday afternoon. Although Mobil Oil Marianas usually takes the lead in setting gas prices in the CNMI, it seems the oil company had yet to change its prices by 7:40pm as of press time. It is expected to do so today.

With these recent increases in prices, a gallon of regular fuel now goes from $5.56 per gallon to $5.66. Diesel went up from $5.98 per gallon to $6.08.

This follows a string of increases in the last few weeks, with the first increase seen back on July 19. After more than two months of steady fuel prices, Mobil Oil Marianas broke the streak with a 15-cent increase. Regular fuel went up from $5.11 per gallon to $5.26 per gallon.

Less than a week after, on July 25, Shell Marianas surprised the CNMI community when it took the lead in implementing a 10-cent increase that brought regular fuel prices up from $5.26 per gallon to $5.36.

Again, less than a week after, on Aug. 2, gas went up 15 cents. Fuel went up from $5.36 per gallon to $5.51.

Following the Aug. 2 increase, local oil companies raised their prices again in a little over two weeks by 5 cents, with fuel increasing from $5.51 per gallon to $5.56.