The run-up in oil prices has already had an effect: in 2003 inflation came in at 9.87%, almost one percentage point above the government target of 9%. The government points out that the average monthly bill for oil imports, met by the Refinadora Costarricense de Petróleo, was US$53.6m in the first two months of 2004. This was 23% more than for the same period of 2003. The rise in the bill is partly due to an increase in volumes as well as prices: the country is importing 150,000 barrels more each month than it did a year ago. The average price per barrel has gone from US$34.4 a barrel a year ago to US$37.8 now.
The government is trying to protect consumers from the rise in oil prices. Under the law, the government can only increase retail fuel prices after a 5% rise in the international price. The government increased prices in February, but since then, despite the oil price hitting a 13-year high in mid-March, the price has risen by only a further 2.6%.
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