Key Currency Exchange Rates for Friday, 12/8/23

American Dollar to Canadian Dollar = 0.704458; American Dollar to Chinese Yuan = 0.137849; American Dollar to Euro = 1.046620; American Dollar to Japanese Yen = 0.006648; American Dollar to Mexican Peso = 0.049168.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is "coordinating with partners across the supply chain to prepare for any impacts" from a possible work stoppage by workers represented by the International Longshoremen's Association as they negotiate with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), a Port Authority spokesperson told CBS MoneyWatch on Friday. "We urge both sides to find common ground and keep the cargo flowing for the good of the national economy," added the spokesperson, noting that $240 billion in goods move through the two ports each year and that such trade supports more than 600,000 local jobs. According to the union, a strike would affect ports from Maine to Texas. A stoppage could involve up to 45,000 workers at ports that account for roughly 60% of U.S. shipping traffic, leading to a major disruption of shipments, Oxford Economics said in a report.

The global oil benchmark flirted with the $80-a-barrel level again on Tuesday, underlining concerns that an unexpectedly strong crude rally could eventually begin to weigh on economic growth. The combination of renewed U.S. sanctions on Iran, potential sanctions on Venezuela, a rising geopolitical risk premium, strong demand and other factors have made talk of $100 crude sound less outlandish. Indeed, some analysts argue that the backdrop now leaves the market more open to potential price spikes. So what if oil did climb back to triple digits for the first time since 2014? Economists led by Arend Kapteyn at UBS laid it out in a wide-ranging note on Tuesday. Click Read More below for additional information.