A NEW crash in wholesale fuel prices is expected to lop another 3p off the average pump price within two to three weeks, according to industry analysts, as the latest figures show a 2%-3% drop in the cost of petrol and diesel in Scotland.

The AA Fuel Price Report, published today, claims the latest supermarket "price war" – which saw Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Asda slash 2p to 3p off the price of petrol at their forecourts this week – was driving down the average UK price of petrol.

As of Wednesday, the average cost of a litre of petrol in the UK had fallen to 136.89p, compared to 139.91p on the same date in March. In Scotland, prices were higher than the UK average, but recorded similar falls – with petrol 137.2p on average compared to 140.4p in March. Diesel showed a similar pattern, down to 142p on average in Scotland compared to 146.6p in March. In the UK as a whole, a litre of diesel now typically costs 141.76p – down nearly 5p on March.

Meanwhile, the AA believes that falls in the wholesale price of petrol – which has slumped to 47p a litre in a week – will bring about a return to the low of 132p last seen during Christmas and the first two weeks of January this year.