<|begin_of_text|><|begin_of_text|><|begin_of_text|>MANILA, December 24, 2004 (STAR) By Donnabelle Gatdula - The country’s three major oil companies along with several small oil players are cutting pump prices by an average of 30 centavos per<wm> liter to ease financial strain caused by the crisis. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has ordered the companies to reduce their prices to reduce their losses. She said they need only two months’ worth of stocks to ensure that their stores won’t go below zero percent.

But these oil players are considering selling below prices already higher than what they had offered to the consumers.

Oil producers will now only need a third of the stocks for a month’s worth of supply. They will only need one and</wm> a third liters of their stock for a month’s worth of supply.

Oil distributors have also agreed to