ExxonMobil has been accused of keeping drivers and the public in the dark after it stopped telling news media of immediate pump price changes.
The move has drawn criticism from the government and the Consumer Council.
The company, which has 57 filling stations in Hong Kong, yesterday said it had stopped issuing press releases about price adjustments in May.
Since then, prices have increased three times; in each case the rise was led by either Shell or Caltex, and followed by ExxonMobil.
'We believe the issue of press releases is not that effective in disseminating information,' the company's Hong Kong retail director, Shek Wai-ming, said. He said the practice had been adopted only in Hong Kong and Singapore.
The prevailing practice is that major oil companies issue press releases for price adjustments, except Sinopec and China Petroleum.