Boost For Drivers As Stores Cut Diesel PriceSupermarkets Asda and Tesco have cut the price of a litre of diesel to 97.7p amid tumbling oil prices.
Asda, which was the first to announce a cut, said the 2p reduction meant diesel was at its lowest price in over six years. Unleaded petrol remains at 99.7p.
It said these were the maximum prices motorists would have to pay at all of its 279 filling stations across the UK.
Tesco followed suit saying it was cutting the price of diesel to 97.7p at all of its 500 filling stations.
Asda's senior petrol director, Andy Peake, said: "We're delighted to be the first retailer to take diesel to its lowest price level in over six years."
Peter Cattell, fuel director for Tesco, said: "We know our customers really value low fuel prices and having diesel for 97.7p a litre will give our customers a big helping hand."
The reductions come days after the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil fell below $28 to its lowest level since November 2003. It has dropped by around three-quarters since topping $115 in the summer of 2014.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC foundation, said: "The wholesale price of diesel has been below that of petrol since early December so it is right that the benefits retailers have enjoyed in reduced costs are finally passed on to motorists."
Fuel price campaigners believe motorists are being denied even larger savings on diesel because of increased profits in the supply chain.
A study by FairFuelUK found that, since May last year, oil prices in sterling have fallen by more than 54% but retailers have cut pump prices by just 35%.
The report claimed that retailers' profit margin for diesel is 11p per litre compared with just 5.8p for petrol. It argued that diesel should be at least 3p per litre lower than petrol.