Peace at the pumps has come to Abbotsford, B.C., but for a short time Monday morning there was an all-out gas war.
The Abbotsford Costco dropped its prices first, bringing the cost of regular unleaded to a low 116.9 cents per litre. Others quickly followed suit, including a Petro-Canada where drivers lined up to pay 117.9 cents per litre. A nearby Chevron station still showed 137.9 on its signs, which is closer to the recent average price of 134.3 cents per litre in the city, according to .
鈥淚 was driving by and I made a U-turn to come back and fill up,鈥� said one woman at the Petro-Canada station, adding she couldn鈥檛 recall the last time the prices were so low.
鈥淚n marketing, we call Costco a market disruptor,鈥� said Lindsay Meredith, a professor at Simon Fraser University. 鈥淚f Costco is undercutting you, you better match their price so you can sell your stuff. Once you clean up the tanks a little bit, back up goes the price.鈥�
Indeed, by late morning most gas stations had returned back to prices above 130 cents per litre.
