The U.S. Department of Commerce announced that the Supply Chain Agreement, part of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity, will come into effect on February 24, 2024, marking a significant milestone. The agreement, involving 14 partners including the U.S., Australia, and Japan, aims to enhance coordination in building resilient, efficient, and inclusive supply chains, addressing challenges like those seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to FreightWaves, the recent spike in shipping costs resulting from ocean carriers avoiding the Middle East conflict poses a potential long-term threat to rates. Retailers are currently making decisions to redirect back-to-school and holiday import shipments to West Coast ports.
According to The Loadstar, US West Coast ports are anticipating a surge in imports due to a combination of supply chain and geopolitical disruptions. These disruptions include transit difficulties through the Panama and Suez canals, and concerns at East Coast ports related to ongoing labor contract negotiations.
A recent article from Supply Chain Digest was written in conjunction with the Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI). The article focuses on the Lean transformation recently undertaken by aerospace manufacturer, Re:Build Cutting Dynamics – a transformation which has already yielded impressive results.
According to Supply Chain Dive, the US manufacturing industry ended 2023 with growing optimism for a 2024 rebound. Both the ISM and S&P Global PMI indices pointed to rising business optimism and increased investment in advertising. While inflation remains a concern, cost increases are slowing down, suggesting subdued industrial price pressures.
According to FreightWaves, the gap between trucking supply and demand is narrowing, which bodes well for 2024. Tender volumes are about 10% higher this December compared to last, continuing the trend of increasing demand that started last winter.
According to FreightWaves volume data, Atlanta’s share of the US freight market has fallen more than 11% over the past year. While, over the same period, the freight markets in California are recovering more of the market share they had lost to the East Coast.
According to Inbound Logistics, “about half (51%) of transportation companies worry about the potential for compromise, theft, and/or loss of customer/client records due to theft.” The article then goes into detail about what transportation and logistics companies can do to be better equipped to combat threats.
According to The Loadstar, the market share of containerized imports from Asia to the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach has risen over the last three months – increasing from 42% to 46%. The Ports are currently in the process of scaling up to meet increased demand.
Industry experts were hoping to see a late-2023 surge in air cargo demand. According to Air Cargo News, however, that doesn’t appear to be happening. Data shows that demand for air cargo only rose 2% in October as compared to September: a lower increase than many had hoped to see.
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