Happy New Year!
Thank you to everyone for a safe and wonderful 2018! I hope everyone enjoyed their New Year celebration and is looking forward to 2019!
Fuel prices are starting to carve out a bottom. Stocks and crude are starting to trade at normal volumes. There is not too much to report at this time. Oil prices are starting to cautiously rise but more predictions will come next week. OPEC is looking like they are sticking to their proposed cuts. The dollar is losing strength. Global economic acceleration is in question. Trade wars are in discussion. And demand strength is debatable. All great topics that will be better covered next week. So hang tight.
For now, enjoy some cheap gasoline and diesel prices at the pump! The Chicago SPOT market which sets cost in our area is WAY oversupplied in the moment. I would expect to see gasoline prices jump about 5 cents in the next couple weeks, and diesel is ripe for nearly a 20 cent+ price jump in the coming weeks! More to come!
Propane retail prices are stable and supplies are good. The warm weather is keeping demand in check. But the cold is coming. It’s just a matter of time. Please make sure that your driveways are plowed and there is a safe path to your propane tanks to ensure driver safety and efficient delivery.
Thank you again for a great year in 2018 and if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to give us a call.
Best regards,
Jon Crawford – Pres.
Merry Christmas and Happy Volatility!!!
Good morning,
I hope everyone had a safe and Merry Christmas! The weather was nice for travels and fuel retail prices were low for keeping some extra spending money in your pockets. The last few days have been an absolute wild ride. On Christmas Eve, the stock market and crude oil futures posted one of the worst sell offs in history. The causes were fear of economic downturn in 2019, surplus crude oil supplies overtaking demand, Munchin giving a weird call to the banks to try and calm markets, OPEC not cutting enough, record US crude production, and the US Government shutting down. Then we had Christmas and a day off. And then we woke up yesterday to a completely different outlook. The outlook included the following gems: crude oil supplies might be in balance soon according to OPEC; OPEC, Russia, and Canada are all willing to cut even more supplies and sooner if needed; economic outlook is very positive for 2019 with high demand for crude oil; record spending on retail for the holidays; and overall “everything is awesome and gonna be great in 2019.” The sentiment change caused a volatile record day gains in the stock market and crude futures…. Our troubles are over!!!… The sell off is over, crude has bottomed, and December was a fluke… Then we woke up this morning and the markets are selling off again. So basically we have markets that are out of control and I say “get out of the way.” Traders are desperately trying to call a bottom but it just doesn’t want to show its face yet. So for now, sit back and watch probably the bumpiest ride in the market since the last correction.
In local retail news, retail gasoline has hit $1.99/gallon in the surrounding market areas. Diesel retail prices are holding near $2.79/gallon. I don’t think we will go much lower at the pump. But I also don’t see it going back up anytime soon, especially since we went below $2.00/gallon on gasoline at the pump. Once that “1” comes out in front on the price signs at the street, it’s very hard to put the “2” back up.
Propane retail prices are holding steady on good demand. Inventories are around the five year average. Although we had some warm weather here in December, don’t forget to keep your hat and mittens handy. Some cold weather is on the way with some arctic blasts possible in the middle of January. Stay tuned for more info.
As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to give us a call.
Have a safe and Happy New Year’s celebration!
Jon Crawford – Pres.