Does having two supermarkets close to one another guarantee lower prices for motorists, or are other factors more important?

To test this, we investigated the impact the proximity of another supermarket has on the pricing of an Asda supermarket. For each Asda, we identified the closest Morrisons, Sainsbury’s or Tesco. We then plotted the price for the Asda supermarket against the distance to the closest competitor.
According to our analysis, the distance to the nearest supermarket has no bearing on the price that Asda charges. We repeated this for each supermarket and found the same result. If the closest supermarket is 50 metres or 5 km away, our results show that it doesn’t impact the price that any of the supermarkets charge. This doesn’t mean it’s not ever a factor or will not be a factor in the future.
So, what does impact the price?
Well, it is simply the price the other supermarket is charging.
We repeated the analysis, this time focusing on the price each of the two supermarkets charged, and the results were very different.
There is a clear correlation between the price Asda charges and their nearest competitor charges. This doesn’t tell us who is setting the price, and in all likelihood, it will be a combination of both parties competing over price to gain your business.

These findings, while not surprising, are encouraging for motorists. They indicate that companies are actively competing for your business. However, it’s important to note that the nearest supermarket price is just one of many factors influencing these prices. Fuel costs, non-supermarket prices, and site costs are among the other factors that contribute to the overall price being charged.
By comparing prices and being open to utilise different fuel brands motorists can affect how stations compete and price fuel.
Excellent reading it’s good to know that the supermarket are perhaps now looking at each other. Every little helps.
I think it’s disgusting the way supermarkets charge more than other petrol stations, can you tell me why Sainsbury’s charge more at one station than another just 2 miles away I personally think all of there PetrolPrices should be the same price regardless where they are
It does seem to make a difference – the prices dropped where I live (Aylesbury) once Sainsbury’s opened a new petrol station (we only had 2 Tesco’s before – we have an Asda but neither it nor our Morrisons have a petrol station)!