Element's latest trends report highlights key trends involving sustainability/charging investments, acquisition, fuel, and safety.
Record-high fuel prices are prompting a new type of fuel theft in which the perpetrators puncture fuel tanks. Fleet operators are not only out of gas; they face expensive repairs and extended downtime, too.
Since the beginning of November, U.S. gasoline demand has softened, and average fuel prices have remained flat at $2.16 on the week.
National average diesel fuel prices were $2.50 per gallon as of Nov. 30, 2020, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. This uptick is higher than prices in late June and late August and is reaching peaks not seen since mid April.
Following the Thanksgiving holiday, the average national price for gasoline is at $2.12, two cents more than a week ago, but still down 46 cents from last year.
The largest fleet operating expense is fuel, which traditionally represents approximately 60% of all operating costs. However, the decreased miles driven by fleets during the pandemic was the No. 1 factor contributing to keeping fuel costs flat in 2020.
The price of fuel is impacted by many variables making predictions difficult. However, there are certain variables that are in play today, which allows us to extrapolate and extend those trend lines into the next calendar-year and interpret possible outcomes.
The COVID-19 pandemic divided the fleet market into essential and non-essential businesses, causing hundreds of thousands of company vehicles to sit idle from mid-March to mid-May. The economic shutdown caused miles-driven to plummet.
The national average for gas prices dropped to $2.18, which 48 cents cheaper than mid-September last year, and is being driven by low oil prices.
Topics mentioned in this video include: A look at the July Consumer Spending Report; Hurricane Laura’s near miss in potentially damaging Gulf Coast refineries; ongoing stability in fuel prices; measuring fleet vitality real-time with total miles driven; and an update on the wholesale market.
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