Asda announce fuel price cap as crude slides
Asda has announced a cut to the price of its petrol and diesel by 2p, capping unleaded at 105.7p per litre and diesel at 106.7p.
The supermarket chain, which operates 272 petrol stations throughout the UK said the move would especially benefit domestic holidaymakers.
Andy Peake, Asda’s senior director for petrol, said: “It’s the start of the summer holidays and we know families will be getting out and about all across the country which is why we’re dropping the price of fuel.
“At Asda we always pass on any savings we can make to our customers, so it’s great to see that costs have dropped despite early predictions that the cost of fuel would increase following the outcome of the EU Referendum.”
The move comes as attempts to halt oil price falls come up short.
Oversupply in the market has been an ongoing issue, leading to business-busting lows in December when the price of a litre of unleaded and diesel fell below £1.
International Brent crude oil futures fell to lows not seen since April of $42.11, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell to $40.95 during July.
The July troughs marked a 20 per cent fall, putting the commodity into a bear market.
Ongoing oversupply prompted US bank Goldman Sachs to speculate a big recovery in prices was not expected any time soon.
“We continue to expect that oil prices will remain in a $45 per barrel to $50 per barrel trading range through mid-2017 with near-term risks skewed to the downside,” the bank said.
However, Goldman Sach’s prediction may be overly optimistic.
Groaning US stocks of gasoline is also adding pressure to international prices, with demand from the huge market expected to come up short.
According to reports, the continuing oil glut is forcing some oil companies store crude and refined products in tankers at sea.
With the economic advantage of off-shore storage likely to be temporary, dealers may soon be forced to bank their holdings cheaply, further exacerbating the downward pressure on prices.
