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A survey carried out by IPESPE on electoral preferences also evaluated the opinion of voters on responsibility for increasing fuel prices
Last Friday (20), the Institute for Social, Political and Economic Research (IPESPE) released a report on the latest survey carried out on voting intentions in 2022 and also on responsibility in the fuel increase. Surprisingly, the majority of those interviewed considered Petrobras to be most responsible.
Respondents were asked whether they should attribute much, little or no responsibility for rising fuel prices in relation to Petrobras, President Jair Bolsonaro of the federal government, state governors, the war in Ukraine, previous governments of Dilma and Lula and the Federal Supreme Court (STF). The survey, registered with the Electoral Court under the number BR-08011/2022, was carried out with a random sample of 1.000 people, interviewed by telephone between the 16th and 18th of May.
Find out the impact of the new fuel price adjustment for Brazil in the video below
In addition to Petrobras, the participants considered others responsible for the increase in fuel prices, such as Bolsonaro, Lula and Dilma, the War in Ukraine and State Governors
The data collected by the IPESPE survey indicate that 64% of the participants considered Petrobras to be largely responsible for the increase in fuel prices, while Jair Bolsonaro's rate was 45% and that of the Ukrainian War, 40%, as shown in the graph below, obtained from CNN Brasil. Another 24% also considered Petrobras to be less responsible. Only 7% considered that the state-owned company was not responsible.
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A good portion of the participants also attributed great responsibility to state governors, with a percentage of 40%, to the previous governments of Lula and Dilma, with 37% and to the Federal Supreme Court (STF), with 32%, as shown in the graph below. Note that 31% also considered the governors somewhat responsible for the increase in fuel prices and 23% the previous governments.
The survey was conducted using strict statistical criteria and has a 95% confidence interval, according to the calculations, in addition to a margin of error of 3,2 points. This means that if 100 surveys of the same type were carried out in different random samples in Brazil, at least 95 of them would have a result very similar to the findings of this one, within the margin of error.
Readjustments in fuel prices had consecutive increases in 2022 and 2021
The beginning of 2022 was marked by consecutive increases in fuel prices, announced by Petrobras. The first readjustment took place on January 12, when gasoline rose 4,9% and diesel 8,1%. In March 2022, after 2 months holding prices, the company announced an increase of 18,8% in the price of gasoline and 24,9% for diesel oil.
In the second week of May, there was another readjustment announced with rates of 2,48% in the price of gasoline, 8,44% in ethanol, 4,74% in diesel oil and 0,24% in vehicle gas, according to IPCA data ( Extended National Consumer Price Index) by IBGE. Accounting from March 2021, Petrobras has already made 14 readjustments in the value of gasoline and 12 in the value of diesel.
However, many factors may be involved in this rise in prices, including the conflict between ukraine and russia which shook the entire world fuel scenario, raising prices even in the United States. As we know, Russia is a major producer and exporter of oil and its derivatives and the economic embargoes suffered by it could spill over to all other countries.
