AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report for Friday, 3/9/18

American Dollar to Canadian Dollar = 0.723793; American Dollar to Chinese Yuan = 0.138926; American Dollar to Euro = 0.971826; American Dollar to Japanese Yen = 0.006766; American Dollar to Mexican Peso = 0.049825.

Her photographic and digitally-altered photographs are filled with anthropomorphized animals, peacefully surreal settings and a lack of physical and gravitational limitations. The portraits, part real-world representation and part imaginative adaptation are all possible because of the creativity, passion, and artistry of Karen Alsop, a Melbourne, Australia-based teacher/photographer/digital artist. Composed of bits and pieces of photographs (oftentimes just lighting, an angle, or a fraction of an image), brushes she’s created in Photoshop, repeated visits to ideal locations, and stand-ins for subjects who aren’t available, every image has one thing in common: It begins with a story.

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index rose 2.4% in May after decreasing 1.7% in April. In May, the index equaled 115.4 (2015=100) compared with 112.7 in April. “Tonnage had a nice gain in May, but remains in recession territory,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “The 2.4 percent gain didn’t erase the 4.5 percent total drop the previous two months. Additionally, tonnage continues to contract from year earlier levels as retail sales remain soft, manufacturing production continues to fall from a year ago, and housing starts contract from 2022 levels.” Compared with May 2022, the SA index decreased 1.3%, which was the third straight year-over-year decrease. In April, the index was down 3.4% from a year earlier.