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On April 18, it was learned from the Ministry of Public Security that on April 17, eight departments—the State Taxation Administration, the Ministry of Public Security, the Supreme Peoples Court, the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate, the Peoples Bank of China, the General Administration of Customs, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange—held a national meeting in Beijing on April 16 to promote the normalized joint crackdown on tax-related crimes. The meeting discussed and deployed key tasks for the next stage, focusing on promoting the normalized joint crackdown mechanism on tax-related crimes to play a greater role, effectively safeguarding a fair and law-based economic and tax order, and better serving high-quality development. The meeting emphasized that all departments should strengthen the construction of a full-chain, integrated crackdown mechanism from administrative law enforcement to criminal justice; deepen multi-departmental data sharing, information exchange, joint analysis, and coordinated crackdowns; intensify efforts to combat tax-related crimes such as invoice violations, export tax fraud, and fraudulent tax benefits; strengthen case-based tax education and legal interpretation; continuously strengthen warnings and deterrence; and continuously improve the effectiveness of joint punishment, further creating a new situation in the joint crackdown on tax-related crimes by the eight departments.On April 18, Turkish Foreign Minister Fedan stated that Israel uses security as a pretext to seize more land, but true peace requires an end to the use of force against other countries. AFP reported that Fedan, speaking at the Antalya Diplomatic Forum in Turkey, said, "Israel is not pursuing its own security, but more land. The Netanyahu government is using security as a pretext to occupy more land." "Israel has created a false impression internationally, claiming it is acting for its own security. But the facts are very clear, especially in recent years… its aims go far beyond that," Fedan said.U.S. Central Command: Since the blockade began, 23 ships have turned back at the direction of the U.S. military.German Finance Minister: Structural reforms are a certainty.German Finance Minister: Germany has indicated its willingness to cooperate with the Global South on the issue of UN Security Council reform.

U.S. Gasoline Retail Prices Hit New Record as Refiners Struggle to Meet Demand

Haiden Holmes

May 11, 2022 09:52

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On Tuesday, retail gasoline prices in the United States reached another all-time high, exceeding the record set in March, as worldwide refineries struggled with a bottleneck that has pushed prices surging ahead of the summer driving season.


According to the American Automobile Association, the average price of a gallon of retail gasoline surpassed the previous record of $4.331 early on Tuesday morning.


Brent oil prices are down 7% since March 30, whilst gasoline futures are up 9.4% and set a new high of $3.7590 per gallon on Friday before retreating on Monday.


Even though the United States and other countries have made initiatives to increase the global crude supply, gasoline prices have risen as a result of both planned and accidental refinery shutdowns. As demand has returned to pre-pandemic levels, the global supply of petroleum is diminishing. Following the invasion of Ukraine and subsequent sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and its allies, supplies tightened further.


Mike Jennings, CEO of HF Sinclair Corp, estimated on Monday's results call that the globe has lost 1 million barrels of refining capacity and 1.5 million barrels of oil supplies since the outbreak of the pandemic.


"That's 2.5% of global consumption...that's a significant figure," said Jennings.


In the spring, refineries emphasize gasoline production ahead of the onset of warmer weather and more traffic. In recent weeks, however, they have expanded distillate production to fulfill the demand for jet fuel and diesel in Europe, Latin America, and the United States, while Western sanctions against Moscow have limited Russia's exports.


Gary Cunningham, Tradition Energy's head of market research, said that refinery utilization would remain very high throughout the year on earnings calls.


This week, diesel gasoline set a pump price record of $5.45 per gallon.


Still, gasoline costs in the United States are far cheaper than in other big consumer nations, such as the United Kingdom, Japan, and France, where greater taxes raise the price of fuel.


Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said, "I do not see this issue being resolved until at least 2023, when greater refining capacity comes online in the Middle East and Asia."


The price of U.S. crude oil, the greatest input cost for refiners, has declined by over $20 from its March highs, with supply bolstered by the release of millions of crude barrels from U.S. strategic reserves and demand weakened by coronavirus lockdowns in China.


However, merchandise inventories continue to decline. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, gasoline stockpiles have decreased by 3 percent year-over-year to 228.6 million barrels.


On Monday, the 3-2-1 crack spread, a proxy for refining profits, hit $54.34, an increase of roughly 150 percent compared to the same time last year.


Jennings said, "I believe we can anticipate that commodity prices and, in particular, pricing of our goods will be pretty high, providing the economy remains generally robust."

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