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A Sheetz customer gets gasoline at a gas station in Plains, Pennsylvania, U.S. October 19, 2022. 

Aimee Dilger | Reuters

Gasoline prices are now cheaper across the U.S. than they were a year ago, and the price per gallon could fall below $3 for most Americans by the end of the year.

According to AAA, the national average for a gallon of unleaded gasoline was $3.329 on Thursday, below the $3.343 a year ago, before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Unleaded gasoline was at a record $5.01 per gallon June 14 and stayed high through the summer and fall.

Gas prices fell 15 cents per gallon in the past week and are down from $3.80 a gallon a month ago.

“For the next 55 days, it looks good for consumers but ugly for refiners,” said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis and co-founder of OPIS, formerly Oil Price Information Service. “They’re running refineries so hard because of the diesel shortage that they’re making too much gasoline. We’re running about 7% behind last year in terms of demand.”

Kloza expects to see gasoline below $3 a gallon for most Americans, before prices start to tick back up when refiners begin to produce summer blends in February. “You just can’t run refineries at these high rates and make too much gasoline for the summer because there’s no place to put it. I think we see the lowest prices of 2023 in the next 55 days,” he said.

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, expects the national average will fall below $3 a gallon by Christmas, barring an event that drives oil prices higher. Even with OPEC+ reaffirming a 2 million barrel a day production cut this past week, oil prices have still fallen.

West Texas Intermediate oil futures were trading at $73.81 a barrel Thursday morning and are down 1.9% for the year so far. De Haan said a wild card for oil is the timing of the reopening of the Chinese economy, after Covid shutdowns. That would push demand sharply higher for oil and other commodities.

But for now, gasoline prices are in decline.

“$2.99 looks like a pretty strong shoe-in at this point. The question is if it’s going to be at 11 p.m. on the 23rd or 11 a.m. on the 24th,” De Haan said. Gasoline prices are wide ranging by region, with the average at $4.66 per gallon in California but already below $3 per gallon in some states, including Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, Arkansas and Alabama.

De Haan said the price could drop as low a $2.75 per gallon before it begins to rise again later in the winter. Refinery utilization was more than 95% last week, an unusually high level for this time of year, he added.

“Gasoline inventories saw a massive build. That’s probably going to provide refiners a little bit of ammunition to slow things down,” De Haan said.

Kloza said the U.S. currently has 26 days of supply, more than ample with the decline in demand to a four-week average of 8.4 million barrels a day.

Diesel inventories have also been growing and that could help drive down prices. The average price for diesel was $5.00 per gallon, down from $5.81 in June. Diesel is in short supply globally because Russia was a large oil and fuel exporter to Europe. As a result, diesel’s price decline has been much shallower, and its price is far from the average $3.61 a gallon it was a year ago.

Before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia exported 2.4 million barrels a day of refined petroleum products, including more than 1.1 million barrels a day of diesel exports, according to Bank of America. About half of the refined products went to Europe. 

De Haan expects diesel could eventually drop below $4. “I think diesel could fall into the $3s,” he said. “That’s the bigger factor right now in inflation. ... Gasoline is now lower than its year ago level. Gasoline has been deflationary. Diesel could drop another $1 to $1.50 a gallon,” he said.

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Exxon earnings beat, increases fourth-quarter dividend

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Exxon earnings beat, increases fourth-quarter dividend

An Exxon gas station is seen in the Brooklyn borough of New York City on Oct. 6, 2023.

Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images

Exxon Mobil beat third-quarter earnings expectations, as the oil major reached its highest liquids production level in more than four decades.

Here is what Exxon reported for the third quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG: 

  • Earnings per share: $1.92 adjusted, vs. $1.88 per share expected.
  • Revenues: $90 billion, vs. $93.94 billion expected

The oil major booked net income of $8.61 billion in the quarter, or $1.92 per share, down about 5% compared to $9.1 billion, or $2.25 per share, in the year-ago period. Exxon’s profits have declined as refining margins and natural gas prices have pulled back from from historically high levels in 2023.

The company returned $9.8 billion to shareholders in the quarter and increased its fourth-quarter dividend to $0.99 per share.

Exxon said it has reached its high production level in more than 40 years at 3.2 million barrels per day.

The oil major’s stock rose about 1% in pre-market trading. Exxon shares have gained 16.8% this year.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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Chevron beats earnings expectations, returns more than $7 billion to shareholders

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Chevron beats earnings expectations, returns more than  billion to shareholders

Chevron beats earnings expectations, returns more than $7 billion to shareholders

Chevron beat third-quarter earnings and revenue expectations, returning a record amount of cash to shareholders.

Shares were up 2.6% in the premarket following the report’s release.

The oil major’s quarterly profit, however, declined substantially compared to the year-ago period due to lower margins on refined product sales, lower prices and the absence of favorable tax times.

Chevron is aiming to streamline its portfolio, with asset sales in Canada, Congo and Alaska expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2024. The company is also target $2 billion to $3 billion in cost reductions from 2024 through the end of 2026.

Here is what Chevron reported for the third quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG: 

  • Earnings per share: $2.51 adjusted, vs. $2.43 expected
  • Revenue: $50.67 billion, vs. $48.99 billion expected

Chevron’s net income came in at $4.49 billion, or $2.48 per share, down 31% from $6.53 billion, or $3.48 per share, in the third quarter of 2023. When adjusted for foreign currency impacts, the company reported earnings of $2.51 per share, solidly topping Wall Street’s expectations for the quarter.

Chevron booked revenues of $50.67 billion, also beating Street expectations but declining 6% from the $54.1 billion reported in the third quarter last year.

The oil major returned a record $7.7 billion to shareholders in the quarter, including $4.7 billion in share buybacks and $2.9 billion in dividends.

Chevron produced 3.36 million oil-equivalent barrels per day in the quarter, a 7% increase over the third quarter of 2023, driven by record output in the Permian Basin.

Chevron’s stock is largely flat for the year, underperforming the S&P 500 energy sector which has gained more than 6%. Shares have struggled to gain ground as uncertainty looms over the company’s pending $53 billion acquisition of Hess.

The Federal Trade Commission has cleared the deal, though it prohibited John Hess from joining Chevron’s board.

Chevron remains locked in a dispute with Exxon Mobil, which is claiming a right of first refusal over Hess Corp.’s lucrative oil assets in Guyana. If an arbitration court rules in Exxon’s favor, Chevron’s acquisition of Hess would fail to close.

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China’s Zeekr reports EV deliveries in October nearly doubled, clocks its best monthly numbers

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China's Zeekr reports EV deliveries in October nearly doubled, clocks its best monthly numbers

ZEEKR EV cars are displayed at the 45th Bangkok International Motor Show in Bangkok, Thailand, March 25, 2024.

Chalinee Thirasupa | Reuters

Chinese electric carmaker Zeekr said Thursday its deliveries surged by 92% in October from a year ago, helping the company clock its best month at 25,049 vehicles.

That beat the prior record of 21,333 deliveries in September, bringing Zeekr’s total for the year to nearly 168,000.

The company has reportedly said that it expects to deliver 230,000 cars in 2024. With only two months left in the calendar year, that means Zeekr needs to deliver more than 31,000 cars in November and December each.

The Geely-backed automaker began deliveries of its new five-seat SUV Zeekr Mix on Oct. 23.

Xpeng also beat its personal best for a second straight month, delivering 23,917 vehicles in October. The deliveries included the company’s mass-market car, Mona M03, accounting for over 10,000 units.

Xpeng launched Mona M03 in late August with prices starting at $16,812.

Premium brand Nio said it delivered 20,976 cars in October, including 4,319 vehicles from its lower-priced brand Onvo, which was launched in September.

Li Auto, whose cars mostly come with a fuel tank to extend the battery’s driving range, delivered 51,443 cars, slightly lower than its record month in September.

BYD and Aito had not yet released their October deliveries as of Friday afternoon.

Earlier in the week, Chinese smartphone and home appliance company Xiaomi said it delivered more than 20,000 electric vehicles in October.

The company only launched its first car — the SU7 — in late March.

Xiaomi aims to deliver 100,000 electric cars by the end of November. The company has delivered more than 75,000 cars as of October.

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