Key Currency Exchange Rates for Friday, 3/18/22

National Average Price for Regular Unleaded Current: $2.838; Month Ago: $2.500; Year Ago: $2.325. National Average Price for Diesel Current: $3.056; Month Ago: $2.740; Year Ago: $2.783

Futures dropped as much as 1.2 percent in London, extending Monday’s decline. Uncertainty over the outcome of Thursday’s meeting is creating the risk of a slide in prices, which have gained on assumptions that the curbs will be prolonged for nine months, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. OPEC backs such an extension but is still waiting for commitments from Russia, according to people familiar with the matter. Crude surged earlier this month on signs the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its partners will prolong cuts aimed at shrinking a global glut. Prices, time spreads and hedge-fund positioning all reflect a high probability the group will follow a Saudi proposal to extend the pact to the end of 2018, Goldman said. Yet Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said Tuesday that it’s too early to talk about the duration. Click Read More below for additional information.

The American Trucking Associations welcomed an announcement from the Department of Transportation that new heavy-duty trucks would be required to have automatic emergency braking technology. “ATA has long supported the use of AEB on all new vehicles,” said ATA Vice President of Safety Policy Dan Horvath. “With NHTSA’s recent regulation requiring AEB on all new passenger vehicles, this proposal for heavy-duty trucks is timely and appropriate. “The trucking industry supports the use of proven safety technology like automatic emergency braking,” Horvath said. “We look forward to reviewing this proposal from NHTSA and FMCSA and working with them as it is implemented.”