LONDON, Oct 27 (Reuters) - The average British petrol price fell over the weekend below 1 pound (S$2.38) a litre, for the first time in almost a year, the AA said on Monday.
"In Sunday trading, the cost of petrol tumbled to 98.63 pence per litre with diesel 111 pence, taking the price of petrol back to where it was around 30 October last year," the motoring organisation said in a statement.
"Compared to the record high price of 119.7 pence per litre in mid-July, this has put nearly 45.16 pounds a month back into the budget of a family with two petrol cars."
Average petrol prices soared to the record high of almost 1.20 pounds a litre in mid-July, when Brent crude oil touched an all-time high of $147.50 a barrel.
Since then, slowing global demand in response to higher prices and the impact of the economic crisis has knocked crude oil some 60 percent lower to around $60 a barrel.
The AA said "cut-throat" competition from supermarkets had helped drive down average prices across Britain since October.
As many as 68 percent of British drivers buy their fuel at supermarkets, according to an AA Populus survey of 12,000 motorists.
British supermarkets have frequently offered discount vouchers for the forecourt to drivers who stock up on groceries at their stores.
Wholesale premium gasoline prices have fallen to around $500 a tonne in Europe from a record high above $1,200 a tonne back in July.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged British retailers to cut petrol prices to reflect the drop in the oil price earlier this month.
(Reporting by David Sheppard; Editing by Anthony Barker)
