Tokyo, June 8 (Jiji Press)–The average retail price of regular gasoline in Japan as of Monday rose 1.6 yen from a week before to 169.8 yen per liter, up for the first time in eight weeks, reflecting higher crude oil prices, an industry ministry report showed Wednesday.

The average pump price rose in 41 of the country’s 47 prefectures, fell in five others and stayed flat in the remaining one–Kochi. The highest price was marked in Nagasaki, at 181.7 yen.

Crude oil prices are expected to remain on an uptrend amid supply concerns chiefly reflecting the European Union’s ban on Russian oil imports.

The industry ministry has decided to increase the amount of subsidies paid to oil wholesalers by 2.1 yen to 38.8 yen per liter beginning Thursday.

However, the subsidy increase is not near enough to offset the higher crude oil prices, said an official at the Oil Information Center, which conducts the weekly survey on behalf of the ministry.