American Dollar to Canadian Dollar = 0.787610; American Dollar to Chinese Yuan = 0.154691; American Dollar to Euro = 1.225010; American Dollar to Japanese Yen = 0.009624; American Dollar to Mexican Peso = 0.050011.

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 2.4% in March after rising 0.7% in February. In March, the index equaled 118.8 (2015=100) versus 116.1 in February. “It is important to note that ATA’s for-hire tonnage data is dominated by contract freight with minimal amounts of spot market loads,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “And clearly contract freight was solid in March, witnessing the largest sequential gain since May 2020. March was also the eighth straight month-to-month improvement, with a total increase of 7.4% over that period. “During the first quarter, the index rose 2.4% from the final quarter of 2021 and increased 2.6% from a year earlier. While there might be some recent softness in the spot market, for-hire contract freight tonnage remains solid and is only limited by lack of capacity—both drivers and equipment—at contract fleets.”

Futures rose 0.5 percent in New York after slipping a second session Tuesday. Inventories dropped by 9.2 million barrels last week, the American Petroleum Institute was said to report. If that is replicated in government data Wednesday, it would be the largest drop in almost a year. Output from Libya is rebounding as its biggest field boosts production and a port reopens. OPEC won’t clear the global glut any time soon since any increase in price continues to bolster rival production from U.S. shale, according to the International Energy Agency. Click Read More below for additional detail.