FYI Miami: August 18, 2022

Below are some of the FYIs in this week’s edition. The entire content of this week’s FYIs and Insider sections is available by subscription only. To subscribe click here.

GAS PRICE FALL NEAR END? Average gasoline prices in Miami fell 13.2 cents per gallon in the past week to $3.71, according to GasBuddy. Prices in Miami are 69.7 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and 68.2 cents higher than a year ago. The national average price fell 9.9 cents to $3.92, down 63.7 cents from a month ago and 74.8 cents higher than a year ago. “For the ninth week straight, gas prices have continued to fall, but the streak is at great risk of being broken this week with wholesale gasoline prices having bounced back up some 40 cents per gallon as oil prices have rebounded,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. 

PORT FUNDS: PortMiami is the beneficiary of a $16 million Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant for its NetZero: Cargo Mobility Optimization and Resiliency Project. The program aims to convert the entire cargo movement chain to a carbon-neutral operation. The RAISE grant will help fund PortMiami’s intermodal rail expansion by adding two rail tracks and three new electric rubber-tired gantry cranes; also the installation of LED lights and the reconstruction of stormwater drainage to address sea level rise, a press note from Miami-Dade County announced. The funds from the US Department of Transportation will also support cargo gate improvements, including roadway realignments, gate canopies and technology upgrades. Also, improved access and staging for trucks and new gate technology upgrades will allow for faster movement of goods and reduced dwell time for trucks.

TOURISM GAINS: Tourism in Florida during the first half of 2022 was up 20% from the same period last year and was higher than during the first six months of 2019, the last full year of travel before the pandemic. Visit Florida, the state’s tourism-marketing agency, estimated Florida had 33.717 million visitors from April 1 through June 30, bringing the total for the first six months to 69.34 million. The second quarter was up 5.6% from the same period in 2021. Tourism in the first quarter was 38.3% above the first quarter of 2021. Travel from within the US accounted for 93% of the people visiting Florida during the second quarter. 

STATE REVENUES SOAR: With inflation pushing up prices of taxable items, Florida’s general revenue substantially topped expectations in June and in the recently completed fiscal year. General revenue collections in June were $978.7 million, 27.6%, higher than projected. The state took in nearly $3.85 billion, 9.6% more than forecast. The personal savings rate, the percentage of disposable income that people save, was 5.1% in June, down from 5.5% in May. During fiscal 2018-2019, the last fiscal year before the pandemic, the savings rate was 7.9%.