DIESEL has tumbled to a record 17p a litre low, in a huge boost for motorists.
The drop has set a new record for the biggest fall in a single month since 2000, analysis of RAC Fuel Watch data revealed today.
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It is welcome news to drivers who have battled months of extortionate fuel prices as conflict between the US and Iran wreaked havoc on wholesale oil prices and supply.
Oil is traded globally and when crude prices fall the price of wholesale diesel and petrol also decreases.
At the start of June, diesel averaged 183.75p but by the end it had tumbled 16.6p to 167.14p, exceeding the previous largest drop in a calendar month by almost 5p (4.69p).
This was the 12p (11.92p) drop in May 2023, almost a year after the start of the war in Ukraine sent the oil price soaring.
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Meanwhile, petrol users will also be relieved to hear the fuel has reduced by 8p a litre (7.97p) in June – making for the seventh greatest monthly fall in the last 26 and a half years – falling from 159.37p to 151.40p.
This has saved petrol car drivers £4.40 a tank on a typical 55-litre family car (£87.65, down to £83.27).
But the RAC said the diesel saving is even greater, with a full tank now £9 less than it was at the start of the month – £91.93, down from £101.06.
The diesel pump price drop was even greater at the big four supermarkets, with their average price coming down 19p a litre from 182.37p to 163.28p.
However, the unleaded reduction was slightly smaller than the UK-wide one, at 7p (7.15p).
The price of motorway fuel also fell by nearly 8p for unleaded – 179.78p to 171.67p, but diesel’s decline wasn’t as steep as that seen across the whole of the UK, only coming down 14p (13.83p) from 201.07p to 187.24p.
“As things stand, petrol should dip under 150p soon and diesel ought to get to below 160p but we would need the price of oil to fall further to see a return to the pre-conflict prices,” Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said.
Prices have fallen thanks to the US and Iran agreeing to sign a deal to end the conflict.
The plan also lays the foundations for the crucial Strait of Hormuz crude oil shipping lane to be reopened after months of blockages.
But relationships between the two countries remain fraught.
The pair held technical talks in Doha on Wednesday in an attempt to agree on the flow of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and secure a lasting ceasefire, a source with direct knowledge of the talks and an Iranian official told Reuters.
How to find cheap fuel
You can use our tool below to find the cheapest petrol stations near you.
All you have to do is select your fuel type (Unleaded E10, Super Unleaded E5, Diesel B7S or Premium Diesel B&P) and the distance you are willing to travel.
Then select ‘use my location’ or enter your postcode and you’ll be shown a list of the cheapest forecourts near you.
