AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report for Friday, 5/19/23

National Average Price for Regular – Current: $2.477; Month Ago: $2.499; Year Ago: $2.316. National Average Price for Diesel – Current: $2.853; Month Ago: $2.840; Year Ago: $2.486.

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 2.4% in September after rising 0.3% in August. In September, the index equaled 112.9 (2015=100) compared with 110.2 in August. “September’s sequential gain was the largest in 2021,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “It is good that tonnage rose in September, but it is important to note that this is happening because each truck is hauling more, not from an increase in the amount of equipment operated as contract carriers in the for-hire truckload market continue to shrink from the lack of new trucks and drivers. “The drivers of truck freight, including retail, construction, and manufacturing, plus a surge in imports, are helping keep demand high for trucking services,” he said.

Saudi Arabia plans to keep its crude oil production in April below 10 million barrels per day (bpd), and maintain exports under 7 million bpd, the energy ministry said on Wednesday, as the top OPEC producer wants to end a global supply glut and boost prices. Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, has been pumping below its OPEC target since January and reducing its crude shipments, particularly to the United States, as it turns its focus on cutting exports in an attempt to drain global oil stocks. Click Read More below for additional information.