The stations of the state-owned oil company Petroleos Paraguayos (Petropar) were benefited by a law enacted on Thursday to subsidize prices of two kinds of fuels, after 15 days of protests by drivers against high rates.

The law authorizes the state-owned oil company to sell type III diesel and 93-octane naphtha at lower prices than those at which it acquired them, so the queues at its stations caused a demand that consumed its stocks.

The legal text foresees that the difference between the prices at which Petropar sells these fuels and the purchase cost will be paid by the Ministry of Finance, while financing will come out of the Treasury taxes.

Leaders of the unemployed transport workers question the inclusion in the law of only part of the fuels and exclusively in the 228 Petropar gas stations, much less than 2,300 of the private sector.

The Government raised fuel prices in February for the first time this year and for the sixth time in the last 12 months.

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