China is warning that rising domestic oil prices could threaten social stability, after Beijing raised the price of retail gasoline for the second time in two months.

The government said earlier this week that it was raising gas prices by 6.5 percent and diesel by 7 percent — the biggest price hike in China in nearly three years.

Retail pump prices are set in China by central authorities, in part to maintain social stability.

The Communist Party-affiliated Global Times newspaper acknowledged Wednesday the move is “unpopular with the public,” warning that rising oil prices have sparked recent protests around the world.

The U.S.-based American Automobile Association says Chinese motorists now pay around $1.20 per liter for fuel. That represents an increase of nearly 50 percent since 2009.

Global Times said the majority of the Chinese public blames high oil prices on the monopoly of the country's state-owned petroleum corporations — Sinopec and CNPC. It said because of their relationship to the government, public anger could soon spill over.

China Central Television this week quoted one car owner complaining about the spike in prices.

“The National Development and Reform Commission reacts slowly when the international oil prices lower. But it reacts so swiftly to keep pace with the rise of the international oil prices.”

The unidentified car owner said authorities are quick to raise pump prices when world prices go up, but slow to reduce them when world prices come down.

The Global Times editorial said Beijing should work to improve transparency and dispel rumors of corruption within Sinopec and CNPC, acknowledging that the two organizations are notorious for “opaque operation” and bad public relations.

The paper said high oil prices could be effective in curbing energy consumption, but warned they could also slow economic growth and trigger massive inflation.

China is the world's second largest consumer of oil, behind the United States.