Key Currency Exchange Rates for Friday, 1/6/23

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.

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.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Wednesday that crude supplies declined by 9.9 million barrels for the week ended June 22—the largest weekly decline so far this year. Analysts surveyed by S&P Global Platts had forecast a fall of 2.3 million barrels, while the American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday reported a drop of 9.2 million barrels. “Record crude exports and record refinery runs have combined to yield the biggest draw to crude stocks so far this year,” said Matt Smith, director of commodity research at ClipperData. “Even crude production holding at a record level has been unable to offset strong domestic and international demand.” The EIA pegged last week’s total domestic crude output at 10.9 million barrels a day, unchanged from the previous week. Click Read More below for additional information.