Rush Hour and A Glut of Oil

[Annie]

On another thread I noted that rush hour seems to be getting lighter and lighter. I'm quite certain that's tied to rising unemployment. What I failed to connect was the many fewer trucks too. Perhaps my mind didn't want to consider the implications of that. Anyways, the 'silver lining' or perhaps a cloud?

Oil producers running out of storage space - Oil & energy- msnbc.com

Oil producers running out of storage space
Glut caused by world slowdown leaves the world awash in crude
The Associated Press
updated 7:01 p.m. CT, Tues., March. 3, 2009
NEW YORK - Supertankers that once raced around the world to satisfy an unquenchable thirst for oil are now parked offshore, fully loaded, anchors down, their crews killing time. In the United States, vast storage farms for oil are almost out of room.

As demand for crude has plummeted, the world suddenly finds itself awash in oil that has nowhere to go.

It’s been less than a year since oil prices hit record highs. But now producers and traders are struggling with the new reality: The world wants less oil, not more. And turning off the spigot is about as easy as turning around one of those tankers.

So oil companies and investors are stashing crude, waiting for demand to rise and the bear market to end so they can turn a profit later.

Meanwhile, oil-producing countries such as Iran have pumped millions of barrels of their own crude into idle tankers, effectively taking crude off the market to halt declining prices that are devastating their economies....

 

[Missourian]

Freight is absolutely scarce right now. My trucks were regularly running 3000 miles a week have been averaging less than half that for the last 4 months.

My shippers have also reduce freight rates as truckload cartage is at a premium. Many trucking companies are undercutting the already reduced rate to keep their trucks rolling just to stay afloat.

Three of my drivers have been forced to quit. They are paid by the mile and obviously less miles means less money. They moved to what they perceived as greener pastures, the mega-trucking companies like Schneider (the orange trucks) and JB Hunt.

I don't blame them. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do when times get tough. I have not tried to replace them. I just mothballed the trucks for brighter times. Luckily we pay cash for our equipment so while not an optimal situation, we aren't struggling. Mothballing those trucks has allowed us to increase the mileage for our remaining drivers. Companies with equipment payments are not in a position to allow trucks to sit idle, as parked equipment is a financial black hole, and believe me, we are the exception, not the rule.

Trading equipment in on new equipment on a 3 or 4 year cycle has become the industry standard (keeps it under warranty). If things keep going the way they're going, you will see a lot of small and midsized trucking outfits disappearing. There's only so much room at the table right now, a situation not seen in freight cartage since deregulation.

I'll post the link to the tonnage per month and year shipped by truck. That will be one of the best indicators that the recession has bottomed.

 

[Missourian]

ATA Truck Tonnage Index Plummeted 11.1 Percent in December​

January 26, 2009 4:30 PM Connie Heiss*703-838-8894


ARLINGTON, VA — The American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index plunged 11.1 percent in December 2008, marking the largest month-to-month reduction since April 1994, when the unionized less-than-truckload industry was in the midst of a strike. December’s drop was the third-largest single-month drop since ATA began collecting the data in 1973. In December, the seasonally adjusted tonnage index equaled just 98.3 (2000 = 100), its lowest level since December 2000.* The not seasonally adjusted index edged 0.6 percent higher in December. *


Compared with December 2007, the index declined 14.1 percent, the biggest year-over-year decrease since February 1996.* During the fourth quarter, tonnage was down 6.0 percent from the same quarter in 2007.


ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said the December reading confirms that the United States is in the thick of a recession. *“Motor carrier freight is a reflection of the tangible-goods economy, and December’s numbers leave no doubt that the United States is in the worst recession in decades,” Costello said. “It is likely truck tonnage will not improve much before the third quarter of this year. The economy is expected to contract through the first half of 2009 and then only grow slightly through the end of the year.”

Here's the link to this article - http://www.truckline.com/pages/article.aspx?id=471/{8E1C7279-ED27-4C03-B189-CEEEE26BBB12}

The tonnage chart is at the bottom of the page.

 

[waltky]

Would imagine the Russian economy is suffering as well...

Oil prices fall as OPEC squabbles over output targets, crude stocks swell
Wed Feb 24, 2016 - Oil prices slid on Wednesday, extending sharp falls from the previous session after top exporter Saudi Arabia ruled out production cuts and industry data showed a further build in U.S. crude stockpiles.

Meanwhile, Iran made clear it has no interest in restraining production after sanctions against it were lifted, calling a joint Russian/Saudi proposal for major exporters to freeze output "laughable". U.S. crude futures CLc1 were trading at $31.14 per barrel at 0526 GMT, down 2.4 percent from their last settlement. International Brent futures LCOc1 were down 1.4 percent at $32.80 a barrel. Both dropped more than 5 percent the previous day. The falls were a result of an apparent lack in cooperation among members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to freeze or cut production and rein in overproduction that has pulled down prices by 70 percent since mid-2014.

Saudi Arabia's oil minister Ali Al-Naimi said on Tuesday that a coordinated production cut by OPEC and non-OPEC exporters was "not going to happen because not many countries are going to deliver". He also said that a proposed freeze in output at January levels, which were near record highs, would require "all the major producers to agree not to add additional barrels".

While non-OPEC giant Russia has tentatively agreed on freezing its output at January levels, when they hit a post-Soviet record, Iran called the proposal "laughable". "Some of our neighbors have increased their production to 10 million barrels a day... and now they have the nerve to say we should all freeze our production together," Bijan Zanganeh was quoted by the Iranian news agency ISNA. "So they should freeze their production at 10 million barrels and we should freeze ours at 1 million barrels - this is a laughable proposal," he said. Ric Spooner, chief strategist at CMC Markets, said there was a risk oil prices could drop further as there was "no realistic prospect of a production agreement" and because of the upcoming low demand spring season in the northern hemisphere.

Singapore-based brokerage Phillip Futures said it expected crude prices to trade in a range of $28 to $36 per barrel in the coming months. Between 1 million and 2 million barrels of crude are currently produced every day in excess of demand, leaving storage facilities around the world brimming with unwanted supplies. The American Petroleum Institute (API) said crude inventories rose 7.1 million barrels in the week to Feb. 19 to 506.2 million, far exceeding expectations of a 3.4 million barrels rise. The U.S. Energy Information Administration will report official inventory data later on Wednesday.

Oil prices fall as OPEC squabbles over output targets, crude stocks swell

See also:

Asian shares, oil retreat as Saudi plays down output cuts
Tue Feb 23, 2016 - Asian shares fell on Wednesday as oil prices skidded after Saudi Arabia effectively ruled out production cuts by major producers anytime soon, sending investors into safe-havens such as the yen.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS extended earlier losses to fall 1.1 percent as of 0246 GMT, slipping further from Monday's six-week high. Japan's Nikkei .N225 shed 0.7 percent on the drop in oil prices and as the stronger yen weighed on exporters. [.T] Chinese shares opened higher but surrendered the gains, with the CSI 300 index .CSI300 down 0.1 percent and the Shanghai Composite .SSEC little changed.

The U.S. S&P 500 Index .SPX fell 1.25 percent on Tuesday to 1,921.27, having failed to rise above its peak hit on Feb. 1, with energy and material sectors being a major drag as oil prices quickly gave up Monday's hefty gains. Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi told oil executives on Tuesday that markets should not view the agreement by four major oil producers to freeze output at January levels as a prelude to production cuts. While Naimi said he was confident more nations would join the pact, Iran was seen as unlikely to agree to the output cap, which does not allow Iran to regain the market share it lost during sanctions.

Oil prices slid in early Asia trade, extending losses of more than 5 percent overnight. U.S. crude futures CLc1 were down 1.8 percent at $31.29 per barrel, while international benchmark Brent futures were down 1 percent at $32.94. "I suspect few people were expecting a deal to cut production so his comments are hardly a surprise. Yet, the latest development seems to suggest that for oil producers to get more united they will have to feel more pain," said Ayako Sera, senior market economist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank. The toll from low oil prices is also spreading to banks that have exposure to the energy sector, as roughly a third of U.S. shale oil producers are at high risk of slipping into bankruptcy this year, according to a study by Deloitte.

MORE

 

[RoshawnMarkwees]

Would imagine the Russian economy is suffering as well...

Oil prices fall as OPEC squabbles over output targets, crude stocks swell
Wed Feb 24, 2016 - Oil prices slid on Wednesday, extending sharp falls from the previous session after top exporter Saudi Arabia ruled out production cuts and industry data showed a further build in U.S. crude stockpiles.

Meanwhile, Iran made clear it has no interest in restraining production after sanctions against it were lifted, calling a joint Russian/Saudi proposal for major exporters to freeze output "laughable". U.S. crude futures CLc1 were trading at $31.14 per barrel at 0526 GMT, down 2.4 percent from their last settlement. International Brent futures LCOc1 were down 1.4 percent at $32.80 a barrel. Both dropped more than 5 percent the previous day. The falls were a result of an apparent lack in cooperation among members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to freeze or cut production and rein in overproduction that has pulled down prices by 70 percent since mid-2014.

Saudi Arabia's oil minister Ali Al-Naimi said on Tuesday that a coordinated production cut by OPEC and non-OPEC exporters was "not going to happen because not many countries are going to deliver". He also said that a proposed freeze in output at January levels, which were near record highs, would require "all the major producers to agree not to add additional barrels".

While non-OPEC giant Russia has tentatively agreed on freezing its output at January levels, when they hit a post-Soviet record, Iran called the proposal "laughable". "Some of our neighbors have increased their production to 10 million barrels a day... and now they have the nerve to say we should all freeze our production together," Bijan Zanganeh was quoted by the Iranian news agency ISNA. "So they should freeze their production at 10 million barrels and we should freeze ours at 1 million barrels - this is a laughable proposal," he said. Ric Spooner, chief strategist at CMC Markets, said there was a risk oil prices could drop further as there was "no realistic prospect of a production agreement" and because of the upcoming low demand spring season in the northern hemisphere.

Singapore-based brokerage Phillip Futures said it expected crude prices to trade in a range of $28 to $36 per barrel in the coming months. Between 1 million and 2 million barrels of crude are currently produced every day in excess of demand, leaving storage facilities around the world brimming with unwanted supplies. The American Petroleum Institute (API) said crude inventories rose 7.1 million barrels in the week to Feb. 19 to 506.2 million, far exceeding expectations of a 3.4 million barrels rise. The U.S. Energy Information Administration will report official inventory data later on Wednesday.

Oil prices fall as OPEC squabbles over output targets, crude stocks swell

See also:

Asian shares, oil retreat as Saudi plays down output cuts
Tue Feb 23, 2016 - Asian shares fell on Wednesday as oil prices skidded after Saudi Arabia effectively ruled out production cuts by major producers anytime soon, sending investors into safe-havens such as the yen.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS extended earlier losses to fall 1.1 percent as of 0246 GMT, slipping further from Monday's six-week high. Japan's Nikkei .N225 shed 0.7 percent on the drop in oil prices and as the stronger yen weighed on exporters. [.T] Chinese shares opened higher but surrendered the gains, with the CSI 300 index .CSI300 down 0.1 percent and the Shanghai Composite .SSEC little changed.

The U.S. S&P 500 Index .SPX fell 1.25 percent on Tuesday to 1,921.27, having failed to rise above its peak hit on Feb. 1, with energy and material sectors being a major drag as oil prices quickly gave up Monday's hefty gains. Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi told oil executives on Tuesday that markets should not view the agreement by four major oil producers to freeze output at January levels as a prelude to production cuts. While Naimi said he was confident more nations would join the pact, Iran was seen as unlikely to agree to the output cap, which does not allow Iran to regain the market share it lost during sanctions.

Oil prices slid in early Asia trade, extending losses of more than 5 percent overnight. U.S. crude futures CLc1 were down 1.8 percent at $31.29 per barrel, while international benchmark Brent futures were down 1 percent at $32.94. "I suspect few people were expecting a deal to cut production so his comments are hardly a surprise. Yet, the latest development seems to suggest that for oil producers to get more united they will have to feel more pain," said Ayako Sera, senior market economist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank. The toll from low oil prices is also spreading to banks that have exposure to the energy sector, as roughly a third of U.S. shale oil producers are at high risk of slipping into bankruptcy this year, according to a study by Deloitte.

MORE

Good thing we're not Russia.
Grocery prices are dropping, too. Awesome! Getting back to that affordable budget that Obama screwed up.

 

[TheOldSchool]

damn nigga

 

[waltky]

Uncle Ferd likes watchin' Miss Sarah...

... do her hoochie-coochie dance.

 

[RoshawnMarkwees]

damn nigga

He ain't a nigga. He's more wigger.
His absentee daddy was an african national. Obama is a nigga wannabe like eminem.