Fuel Price War Is Good News For Fleets

Over the last week or so there has been a huge shock to the system for drivers across the UK. And what is this huge shock I hear you ask (if you hadn’t already inferred it from the title)? Fuel prices are falling!

In fact in just a matter of hours the major supermarkets were embroiled in a price war with prices falling by around 3p per litre on both petrol and diesel. Both Tesco and Morrisons dropped their price almost immediately, with other major retailers following suit. Asda has even gone as far as to lower its prices by a further 0.2p in a clever move which means that drivers save an extra few pence a tank when compared to filling up with a rival. They claim that none of their customers will expect to pay higher than 130.7p per litre across the country for standard unleaded.

This excellent news for all fleets has been brought about after the shock decision by the International Energy Agency to release emergency oil stocks in the leading consumer nations in the West. This decision, only the 3rd of its kind in the history of the agency released 60 million barrels of oil stock, held by governments in the west, over a 30 day period.

The effects of the release were felt across the markets, with world oil prices slumping by 6% within hours of the move being announced.

Fuel prices however are certainly still nowhere near levels which would be deemed ‘cheap’ or ‘good value’ but this temporary reprieve is more than welcome for most if not all vehicle operators. However, to make the most of this drop in price and squeeze as much value as you can out of a tank, make sure you check your tyre pressures!