AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report for Friday, 7/05/24

Oil has advanced this month on forecasts for rising crude demand and as U.S. Gulf Coast plants recover from Hurricane Harvey, which halted almost a quarter of the nation’s refining capacity. Nine months into the OPEC-led supply agreement, implementation of the pledged production cuts remains high. Nigeria, which is currently exempt from making cuts, reiterated that it would accept a cap once output stabilizes around 1.8 million barrels a day. “Today’s meeting of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee is lending buoyancy,” Commerzbank said in a note. “Although no binding promises to extend or expand the agreement can be expected, Nigeria – which like Libya had not signed up to the production cuts – is at least showing a willingness to come on board.” Click Read More below for more of the story.

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index fell 1.1% in July after rising 0.5% in June. In July, the index equaled 116.2 (2015=100) versus 117.5 in June. “Tonnage declined sequentially in July for only the second time during the last twelve months. Despite the dip from June, tonnage remains at elevated levels and increased significantly from a year earlier,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “While tonnage is much stronger than a year ago, the monthly gains have moderated as the year has gone on. The combination of softer consumption of goods, home construction falling and slower manufacturing activity are the main reasons.” June’s increase was revised down from our July 19 press release. Compared with July 2021, the SA index increased 5.1%, which was the eleventh straight year-over-year gain. In June, the index was up 5.6% from a year earlier. Year-to-date, compared with the same period in 2021, tonnage was up 3.4%.

National Average Price for Regular – Current: $2.556; Month Ago: $2.465; Year Ago: $2.148. National Average Price for Diesel – Current: $2.837; Month Ago: $2.724; Year Ago: $2.393.