Asda and Sainsbury’s cut fuel price by 6p per litre TODAY after Spring Statement announcement

SUPERMARKETS including Sainsbury's and Asda are today selling fuel 6p per litre cheaper.

It comes after the Chancellor announced a fuel duty cut in yesterday's Spring Statement.

Fuel duty is being slashed by 5p until March next year but supermarkets are including a 1p reduction in VAT in the price drop.

The cut to fuel duty, announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak today, will reduce the price of filling up an average car by more than £3.

The price change came into effect at forecourts from 6pm last night.

But the timing could vary across the country as retailers rush to change the prices at the pumps.

Asda was the first major retailer to confirm it will cut prices, with a 6p per litre reduction in petrol and diesel.

Sainsbury's also slashed petrol prices by 6p last night across all of its 315 garages.

It's understood that Tesco will be dropping fuel prices by 6p a litre too.

Meanwhile, Morrisons confirmed prices at the pumps will be cut by 5p from 6pm last night.

• Fuel duty cut by 5p per litre - saving families £3.30 every time they fill up their tank - from 6pm TONIGHT
• National Insurance threshold to rise from £9,500 to £12,500 - worth over £330 a year - from JULY
• Income tax rates will be cut from 20p to 19p in 2024
• VAT slashed to 0% for insulation, heat pumps and solar panels in Brexit boost - comes in from April 2022 for five years
• Extra £500million for hard-up Brits through the Household Support Fund - from April

Sainsbury's boss Simon Roberts said last night: “We understand that the cost of living is a real challenge for many households and we are committed to helping our customers as much as we can.

"We welcome the Chancellor’s announcement today which will save motorists money and we are passing the cut to fuel duty to our customers at the pumps across every single one of our 315 forecourts from tonight.”

The RAC had warned the measure might only be reflected in pump prices once retailers purchase new fuel at the lower rate, as duty is charged on wholesale purchases.

But Sainsbury's and Asda both said they will charge the lower price on fuel bought at the higher rate.

Retailers were accused of failing to pass on a reduction in wholesale costs earlier this month.

Figures from data firm Experian Catalist show the average cost of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts on Tuesday was 167.3p, while diesel was 179.7p.

This is an increase of 18.0p per litre for petrol and 27.0p for diesel over the past month.

The Spring Statement also  included major changes to the tax system, in a bid to tackle the cost of living crisis.

Mr Sunak announced that the earnings threshold at which people start paying National Insurance tax will be raised from £9,500 to £12,500.

It means hundreds of thousands of families will pay less - and some of the very lowest earners will dodge the extra charge altogether.

The government is also doubling the Household Support Fund to £1billion.

That means the schemes can be extended beyond the initial March 31 closing date.