Three of the UK's biggest supermarkets announced petrol and diesel price cuts on Friday, in moves that will come as welcome relief for motorists who have faced rising fuel costs in recent weeks.
Sainsbury’s is cutting the price of unleaded petrol by up to 2 pence per litre and diesel by 1 pence per litre across its 309 forecourts, from Saturday.
Sainsbury's announcement matched an earlier price cut from Asda on Friday. Asda's price cap now stands at just below £1.16ppl for unleaded and £1.17 for diesel. Morrisons announced its own 2ppl cut on both fuels on Friday
Morrisons bettered both of its rivals by pledging to cut the cost of both fuels by up to 2ppl.
The RAC welcomed the moves, which spokesperson Simon Williams said would come as “welcome relief for motorists who have suffered a 3p a litre rise in the average price of petrol since mid-August".
He added: "Unleaded prices rose as a result of Hurricane Harvey disrupting oil refining in Texas while rising oil prices have put upward pressure on the cost of diesel".
However, the strengthening of the pound against the dollar has allowed the supermarkets to bring petrol prices down as oil is traded in dollars, Mr Williams said.
Across the UK, the average UK price of a litre of unleaded hit a six-month high of £1.19 this week, while diesel hit £1.21, a level last reached in May, according to figures from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
Mr Williams said: "Motorists are now paying nearly 120p a litre for unleaded, the highest since March, while the average price at the big four supermarkets is 117p.
"This latest cut from the supermarkets should force forecourt reductions across the country, hopefully bringing prices down by 2p a litre everywhere".
