Asda goes head to head with Morrisons as fuel prices tumble

Asda has followed Morrisons’ lead by slashing its fuel prices again.

Today Asda announced that, starting tomorrow morning, all its 172 forecourts in the UK would sell petrol at 97.9p per litre and diesel at 109.9p per litre.

The move means Asda will match rival Morrisons at the pumps in what is the second price reduction by the two supermarkets in less than a week. Last week Asda chopped the price of a litre of petrol by 5p to 99.9p, and Morrisons quickly followed suit by reducing its price per litre by 7p.

The latest price cuts, which follow a steep fall in the price of a barrel of oil, mean Asda has reduced diesel by more than 20p and petrol by 18p in the past three months.

ASDA trading director Darren Blackhurst said: “We monitor prices daily and are committed to delivering the best and fairest prices for our customers – which is why all our petrol stations charge the same low price, rather than hiding behind local pricing.

“We expect oil prices to fluctuate in the coming weeks and will continue to pass on cost savings to customers whenever and wherever possible.”

Sainsbury’s and Tesco have also recently reduced petrol prices to less than £1 a litre for most of their customers.

The price war comes days after Gordon Brown urged retailers to pass on the falling price of oil to their motorists and cut prices at the pumps.

He even threatened petrol companies with an inquiry under competition laws if they refuse to do so, warning he would call in the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to investigate pump prices if firms fail to reduce prices on the forecourt.

Last week he is reported to have told a press conference in Brussels at the close of a European Union summit that “some oil companies are not passing on reductions in oil prices”. He added: “The average price is still £1.07 and there is still too much variation of price across our country...In some areas, the petrol price is still as much as £1.20 a litre. That must change.”

The price of a barrel of oil last week fell to a 14-month low of $68 a barrel, which is well below the record high it reached in July of $147 a barrel.