AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report for Friday, 5/20/22

Futures have climbed 3.8 percent in New York this week after reaching the highest since December 2014 on Thursday. Crude stockpiles fell for a 10th week to the lowest level…

“Trends is an important record of how the trucking industry is performing,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “That’s why it is on the shelves of business leaders and policymakers across North America. “This year’s edition shows that 2023 was a very challenging year, but the industry weathered the storm, moving more than 11 billion tons of freight during the year,” he said. Among the key findings in this year’s report: *Preliminary figures indicate that trucks moved 11.18 billion tons of freight in 2023, down from the 11.46 billion tons hauled the previous year. *Preliminary figures indicate that the industry saw revenues grow to $987 billion, up from $940.8 billion in 2022. *Trucking employed 8.5 million people in industry-related jobs, including 3.55 million professional drivers in 2023. *The industry remains one made up of small businesses, with 95.5% of carriers operating 10 or fewer trucks and 99.6% operating fewer than 100 power units. *Cross-border trade remained a robust source of freight for motor carriers, with trucks moving 66.5% of surface trade between the US and Canada, and 84.5% of goods across the Mexican border in 2023.

Futures lost as much as 0.9 percent in New York after falling 1.6 percent the previous two sessions. U.S. crude inventories rose by 1.82 million barrels last week, the American Petroleum Institute was said to report, even as it noted a large decline at the storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma. While all OPEC members support extending output curbs until the end of 2018, Russia hasn’t yet committed to the proposal, said people familiar with the matter. Oil has eased this week from the highest level in more than two years on uncertainty about the outcome of Thursday’s meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. While the global glut relative to the five-year average has more than halved since January, the surplus still stands at 140 million barrels, OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo said Monday. Click Read More below for additional information.