Price-slashing Tesco has thrown everything into the mix to match Asda's food prices this week, but it was not enough to prevent Asda recording its 14th week as cheapest retailer. Tesco cut the prices of six items on this week's list, five of which equalled Asda's prices. The Cadbury milk chocolate fingers and strawberry jam were cut in price by 18p and the minced beef was reduced from £4.58 to £4.38. Tesco's pork pies were also 22p cheaper than last week and Asda's equivalent. The digestives and tuna chunks were also cheaper. However, despite making five more reductions than Asda, Tesco's £45.25 basket was still 64p more than Asda's total, which shows how consistently lower Asda's prices are in general. The only item Asda reduced in price this week was the Walkers Crisps by 20p. But it didn't make any hikes either and offered six of the cheapest items on the list, including Diet Cola, baking potatoes and peanut butter. Usually ranked in second place, Morrisons was beaten by Tesco this week after raising the price of Walkers Crisps by £1. Eighteen pence was also added to the Cadbury milk chocolate fingers, while Tesco cut them by the same amount. Morrisons offered the cheapest long grain rice at 94p - just a penny less than Tesco 's price. Having leapt to third place by undercutting Tesco last week, Sainsbury's dropped to fourth place this week after making more hikes than price cuts. It followed Morrisons in upping Walkers crisps by £1 and also added 50p to the red seedless grapes and 48p to Diet Cola, which made it the most expensive on the list. Although the broccoli and red wine were reduced by 40p and 21p respectively and its celery was the cheapest on the list following a 20p price cut, its £47.83 basket was too expensive for Sainsbury's to reclaim third place. The gap between Waitrose and Somerfield has widened this week as Waitrose's £50.25 basket had the cheapest red grapes on the list at £2.99. But Somerfield had 17 of the priciest items.

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