AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report for Friday, 4/16/21

American Dollar to Canadian Dollar = 0.758945; American Dollar to Chinese Yuan = 0.149219; American Dollar to Euro = 1.179670; American Dollar to Japanese Yen = 0.009440; American Dollar to Mexican Peso = 0.047040.

Representatives of unionized dockworkers this week unanimously supported leadership calls for a strike at U.S. East and Gulf Coast ports if a new contract with employers isn’t reached by Oct. 1. Nearly 300 International Longshoremen’s Association delegates concluded two days of meetings in New Jersey by unanimously supporting International President Harold J. Daggett’s call for a coastwide strike at ports from Maine to Texas on Oct. 1 if a new Master Contract with United States Maritime Alliance employers to replace the current six-year pact is not reached by that time.

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 0.4% in October after rising 2.2% in September. In October, the index equaled 113 (2015=100) compared with 112.6 in September. “October’s gain was the third straight totaling 2.9%,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “The combination of solid retail sales, inventory rebuilding, and generally higher factory output offset some areas of softer freight growth, like home construction, in October. “Economic growth remains on solid footing, which is good for truck freight volumes going forward. The largest problem for the industry isn’t the amount of demand, but making sure we have adequate supply. It is good to see that fleets were able to haul more tonnage in recent months in the face of constrained supply,” he said. September’s reading was revised down slightly to 2.2% from our October 19 press release.