Topic: Warehouse/DC

The August PMI was 0.1% below the 12-month average of 48.8, with January’s 50.9 and October’s 46.9 marking the respective high and low readings for that period.

Discover Exclusive Insights from the 2025 Warehouse Automation and Order Fulfillment Study. Gain a competitive edge with key findings from a survey of over 125 executives involved in warehouse operations, automation, facility development, and distribution. Representing a broad range of industries—including manufacturing, retail/wholesale, transportation and warehousing, third-party logistics (3PL), and e-commerce/direct-to-consumer—this webinar shares what’s shaping their strategies, the challenges they’re navigating, and how they plan to adapt.

In this podcast, Logistics Management Group News Editor Jeff Berman interviews Steve Miller, Chair of ISM Services Business Survey Committee.

Following a late July announcement in which the United States and the 27-nation bloc comprising the European Union, which collectively represents the largest trading partner for the U.S., announced they had come to terms on the framework of a large global trade deal, the parties said earlier today that they have agreed to additional details but are not yet at the finish line.

RAC ’25 one-day, virtual event will take place on September 17.

A report issued this week by Dallas-based industrial real estate firm CBRE found that third-party logistics (3PL) services providers saw gains in the number of the largest industrial leases signed over the first half of 2025, with the firm citing large occupiers outsourcing more of their warehousing and supply chain operations as a key driver the growth.

Following a 90-day pause rolled out in May, which was set to expire today, the White House said yesterday, in an Executive Order, that tariffs on United States-bound imports from China will remain at current levels for another 90 days, through November 10.

As of August 7, the U.S. has put new tariffs in place on goods from dozens of countries. The updated rates vary widely, with some close trade partners seeing 10 percent tariffs and others facing rates above 40 percent.

A common refrain among industry stakeholders has been that they know tariffs are coming, or have already arrived, but they badly want, and need, some clarity and stability on tariff rates in order to effectively take action, as it relates to a whole host of things, including: operations; sourcing and procurement; inventory management; capital expenditures; and hiring and staffing, among many others.

The July Services PMI, at 50.1 (a reading of 50 or higher signals growth), fell 0.7% off of June’s 50.8 reading, growing, at a slower rate, for the second consecutive month.

The report’s benchmark reading, the PMI, came in at 48.0 (a reading of 50 or higher indicates growth), down 1% off of June’s 48.0 reading, and contracting, at a faster rate, for the fifth month in a row.

While some previous implementation dates for the White House’s reciprocal tariffs placed on goods imported into the United States had seen those dates pushed back, or paused, that was not the case this time around.

With only a few days left until the end of the reciprocal tariff pause between the United States and its trading partners, the framework of a large trade deal was brokered yesterday between the U.S. and the 27-nation bloc comprising the European Union, which collectively represents the largest trading partner for the U.S.

In warehouse operations, data can either overwhelm you—or propel you ahead.

Chattanooga, Tenn.-based 3PL Kenco recently announced it has officially introduced its Contract Packaging Division, which it describes as a strategic investment covering secondary packaging that will “further simplify customers’ operations and strengthen Kenco’s position as a one-stop shop for supply chain management.”

the weekend he said that matching 30% tariffs will be placed on the imports from the European Union and Mexico to the U.S. on the same date—separate from sectoral tariffs.

In its “Q2 U.S. Industrial Market Report,” the firm observed that second quarter net national absorption, at 29.9 million square-feet (MSF), was in line with the first quarter’s 30.3 MSF tally, adding that the second quarter output came in ahead of expectations, and also that demand was paced by “newly built logistics product,” which the firm defines as warehouses built since 20023.

As the White House continues to send out letters to United States trading partners, regarding reciprocal tariffs that will be implemented in U.S.-bound imports, set to take effect on August 1—which was pushed back earlier this week from a previous July 9 deadline—there remains a general sense of supply chain and logistics uncertainty, for industry stakeholders, in terms of next steps.

LM Group News Editor Jeff Berman recently spoke with Tim Hotze, Senior Vice President Operations Planning, Network Steering and Optimization, for Target, at the SMC3 Connections conference in Salt Lake City last month. Hotze provided a detailed overview of key facets of Target's supply chain and logistics operations, including: sourcing, tariffs, AI, and Peak Season, among other topics.

The June LMI reading, at 60.7, increased by 1.3% over May’s 59.4, while representing only the third time going back to July 2022 it has cracked the 60 mark—all of which have occurred in 2025, with 2023 and 2024 not making it to that level.