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Gas Is Still $1.81 a Litre: Why Pump Prices Won't Fall (and What to Do Before Winter)

  Canadians hoping for relief at the pump got bad news heading into this week: it isn't coming soon. The national average for regular gas was $1.81 a litre on Friday, according to Kalibrate, with provincial averages ranging from $1.557 in Alberta to $2.156 in Newfoundland, per GasBuddy. That's after a big policy move. On Friday the G7 announced plans to release 100 million barrels of oil right away, starting with diesel. Brent crude dipped on the news, then climbed back to about US$102 a barrel by the afternoon. Don't expect the release to show up at your station, because crude is only half the story. Crude oil explains only half your pump price Wood Mackenzie's Jim Mitchell says crude makes up 50 to 60 per cent of the retail price of gas. The rest is the cost of refining it, and that's where the squeeze is. Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem pointed to damaged refining capacity worldwide in a Sept. 21 speech, noting that pump prices reflect crude roughly US$40 a ...

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US Dollar Plummets as Federal Reserve Signals Rate Cuts in 2024

 


The US dollar has taken a hit after the Federal Reserve’s latest economic projections indicated that the interest-rate hike cycle has come to an end and lower borrowing costs are coming in 2024 . The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell for a fifth day as fears of a recession and dovish Fed commentary spurred investors to wager the central bank will have to reverse its most aggressive tightening cycle since the 1980s .

The US dollar has fallen to a four-month low after the Federal Reserve’s latest economic projections indicated that the interest-rate hike cycle has come to an end and lower borrowing costs are coming in 2024 . The dollar slid to the weakest level since early August as swap traders ramp up bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates as early as May. 

The dollar remains vulnerable until we see a shift in market expectations for the Fed and that may be a 2024 story. With the dollar rally stalled, it will take some firm real sector data to challenge the current dovish Fed narrative.

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