AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report for Friday, 5/12/23

National Average Price for Regular Unleaded Current: $3.543; Month Ago: $3.579; Year Ago: $4.857. National Average Price for Diesel Current: $3.864; Month Ago: $3.946; Year Ago: $5.772.

Oil last week rose to levels last seen in 2014 amid growing geopolitical risks, with investors anticipating that retaliation against Assad would threaten production in the region, while tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran-backed rebels in Yemen also added to concerns. Still, surging U.S. output continues to weigh on investor sentiment even as the International Energy Agency says the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is close to reaching its target of eliminating a global crude glut. Meanwhile, in the U.S., working oil rigs rose by seven last week to 815, the highest since March 2015, according to data from Baker Hughes. The rig fleet has expanded in 10 of the past 12 weeks. The expansion came after the Energy Information Administration data showed that American oil production rose to a fresh record of 10.5 million barrels a day. Click Read More below for additional information.

Flint Group announced today the acquisition of Eston Chimica SRL located in Padova, Italy. This acquisition follows Flint Group’s strategy to grow not only organically, but also through tactical acquisition. Eston Chimica manufactures and sells water-based inks for flexo and gravure applications to printers predominantly located in Italy and Southern Europe. The company supports key Paper & Board applications, such as corrugated, shopping bags, paper bags, and various other water-based print jobs. Eston Chimica is located in northern Italy, near Venice, and employs 32 people. Kim Melander, Vice President & General Manager EMEA and Global Strategy, Paper & Board, says, "Flint Group is very happy to join together with Eston Chimica. We have found the ‘right’ partner; a company who, with the dedicated support of its employees, has been very successful in recent years outgrowing the market as compared to other suppliers.” Click Read More below for additional information.