Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
We are subject to price risk for our raw materials, the most significant of which relates to the cost of polypropylene and nitrile used in the manufacturing processes of our Products & Healthcare Services segment. Prices of the commodities underlying these raw materials are volatile and have fluctuated significantly in recent years and in the future may contribute to fluctuations in our results of operations. The ability to hedge these commodity prices is limited.
We are exposed to risks of changes in shipping and freight costs, including container and other third party fees associated with the transportation of our products. Shipping and freight costs have fluctuated significantly in recent years and in the future may contribute to changes in our results of operations.
In the normal course of business, we are exposed to foreign currency translation and transaction risks. Our business transactions outside of the U.S. are denominated in the Euro, Malaysian ringgit, Mexican peso, Thai baht and other currencies. We may use foreign currency forwards, swaps and options, where possible, to manage our risk related to certain foreign currency fluctuations. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, we held contracts with notional amounts of $78.4 million and $58.3 million to exchange the U.S. dollar, Euro, Thai baht and other currencies. See Note 12 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
We are exposed to market risk from changes in interest rates related to our borrowing under our Revolving Credit Agreement and Receivables Financing Agreement, and related to our participation in the RPA. Excluding deferred financing costs and third party fees, we had $393 million in borrowings under our Term Loan A, $517 million in borrowings under our Term Loan B, and no borrowings under our Revolving Credit Agreement and under our amended Receivables Financing Agreement at December 31, 2023. After considering the effects of our interest rate swap agreement (See Note 12 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements), we estimate an increase in interest rates of 100 basis points would result in a potential reduction in future pre-tax earnings of approximately $7.6 million per year based on our borrowings at December 31, 2023 and the maximum aggregate outstanding accounts receivable amount of $200 million under the RPA.
Due to the nature and pricing of our Products & Healthcare Services segment distribution services, we are exposed to potential volatility in fuel prices. Our strategies for helping to mitigate our exposure to changing domestic fuel prices have included using trucks with improved fuel efficiency. We benchmark our domestic diesel fuel purchase prices against the U.S. Weekly Retail On-Highway Diesel Prices (benchmark) as quoted by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The benchmark averaged $4.20 per gallon for 2023, a decrease from $5.01 per gallon in 2022. Based on business activity in 2023, we estimate that every 10 cents per gallon increase in the benchmark would reduce our annual operating income by approximately $0.6 million. We are also indirectly exposed to increased shipping and freight costs, including container and other third party fees associated with the transportation of our products due to changes in fuel prices. Changes in fuel prices have contributed to significant shipping and freight costs in recent years and in the future may contribute to changes in our results of operations.
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Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
See Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules.
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
None.