AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report for Friday, 4/11/25

American Dollar to Canadian Dollar = 0.781652; American Dollar to Chinese Yuan = 0.149790; American Dollar to Euro = 1.056755; American Dollar to Japanese Yen = 0.007809; American Dollar to Mexican Peso = 0.050246.

U.S. President Joe Biden does not intend to invoke a federal law to prevent a port strike on the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico if dockworkers fail to secure a new labor contract by an Oct. 1 deadline, an administration official said on Tuesday. The International Longshoremen's Association, negotiating on behalf of workers at three dozen U.S. ports from Maine to Texas that handle about half of the nation's ocean imports, warned again on Tuesday that its members are prepared to stop work in two weeks. Their current six-year agreement with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), which includes employers like Maersk's (MAERSKb.CO), opens new tab APM Terminals and SSA Marine, expires on Sept. 30. U.S. presidents can intervene in labor disputes that threaten national security or safety by imposing an 80-day cooling-off period under the federal Taft-Hartley Act, forcing workers back on the job while negotiations continue.

The annualized turnover rate at both large and small truckload carriers rose by double digit percentage points in the third quarter as the industry began bouncing back from a COVID-19 induced slump. “After a calamitous second quarter, trucking – along with the rest of the economy – began recovering in the third quarter, leading to a tightening of the driver market,” said American Trucking Associations Chief Economist Bob Costello. “With a more robust freight market, we saw an increase in carriers seeking drivers, which led to increased turnover. Additionally, the driver pool has decreased this year for a host of reasons, including fewer new drivers coming into the industry as truck driver training schools train less drivers due to social distancing requirements.” In the third quarter, the turnover rate at truckload carriers with more than $30 million in annual revenue rose 10 percentage points to 92% on an annualized basis. The rate at smaller truckload carriers rose 14 points to 74%. Despite the increases, the 2020 average turnover rate is still running behind 2019.