Brent crude oil hits 2½-year high on Forties pipeline outage

Oil prices edged lower Friday, giving up some of the ground made in a recent rally spurred by supply concerns in Venezuela and Iran. The economic crisis in Venezuela is curtailing the country’s oil production, while the planned reinstatement of U.S. sanctions against Iran is expected to hit production from the third-largest member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Click Read More below for additional information.

American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear told the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that automated vehicle technology holds great promise to enhance highway safety, boost economic productivity, and support trucking’s essential workforce. In order to harness this technology’s full potential, Spear emphasized that regulations must be consistent to avoid a patchwork of rules that treat highway users differently. “What’s needed first is a national framework that encourages development, testing and deployment of technology, in direct support of interstate commerce,” Spear said in a hearing before the panel’s Subcommittee on Highways and Transit. “Federal guidance should treat commercial and passenger vehicles equally and require automated vehicles to achieve an acceptable level of safety and performance, rather than requiring the use of specific technologies.”

National Average Price for Regular Unleaded Current: $4.274; Month Ago: $3.528; Year Ago: $2.884. National Average Price for Diesel Current: $5.066; Month Ago: $3.942; Year Ago: $3.104.