Asda and Tesco have both cut prices at the pumps by up to 3p a litre in the run up to Christmas. Asda was the first to announce the price cuts for unleaded petrol and diesel over the weekend. It was soon followed by Tesco. The supermarkets said they were passing on

a drop in wholesale oil prices to customers.

Asda, which has 179 forecourts across the UK, said drivers would pay no more than 103.9 pence per litre for unleaded and 105.9ppl for diesel.

David Miles, Asda’s commercial director, said: "With Christmas just around the corner, it’s a time when cash is tight and we want to help our customers make it go further. With this early Christmas present, we’re putting money back in our customers’ pockets wherever they fill up by moving quickly to pass the saving on as our costs fall."

A Tesco spokeman said: "We’re committed to being competitively priced on petrol and with hundreds of petrol stations throughout the country, customers can trust they will get a good price on petrol at Tesco. Our customers get Clubcard points on their petrol purchases, meaning that it’s even more rewarding to fill up at Tesco."