Topic: E-commerce

In this podcast, Logistics Management Group News Editor Jeff Berman interviews Melinda McLaughlin, Senior Vice President, Global Head of Research, for Prologis.

Atlanta-based Stord, provider of high-volume fulfillment services and e-commerce technology for leading brands, announced today it has completed its acquisition of Atlanta-based Ware2Go, a UPS subsidiary comprised of a nationwide network of certified warehouses and technology to streamline fulfillment across sales channels, and a flexible business model that eliminates long-term contracts and order minimums. 

Stephanie Rodriguez, National Director of Industrial Services at Colliers, shares how she’s helping clients make smart decisions in what she calls a VUCA era—short for volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity.

Executives from San Diego-based parcel consultancy Shipware offered up some observations on this development, with Amazon and FedEx renewing business ties, following a June 2019 breakup, in which FedEx announced it made a “strategic decision” not to renew the FedEx Express U.S. contract with Amazon, as it focused on serving the broader e-commerce market.

Commerce reported that April retail sales, at $724.1 billion, were up 0.1% compared to March and up 5.2% annually. NRF reported that April’s retail sales which are based on Census data and exclude automobile dealers, gas stations, and restaurants, fell 0.1% on a seasonally-adjusted basis, from March to April, and rose 5.1% annually, on an unadjusted basis.

Following the United States and China announcing yesterday that they have agreed to drop substantial tariffs placed on each other for a 90-day period, through August 12, the White House announced later in the day, through an executive order, that it is lowering applied de minimis tariff rates placed on low-value imports under $800 imported into the United States from China and also Hong Kong.

On the revenue side, the report found that 71% of respondents forecasted positive revenue growth, down 3% from the second quarter, and up 6% compared to the first quarter. And it added that 16% of respondents are neutral, up from 12% in the second quarter, with 14% negative, matching the second quarter.

DHL Supply Chain described this deal as a strategic move to further enhance its e-commerce capabilities, as well as extend its services to small and midsized customers. IDS Fulfillment brings more than 1.3 million square-feet of multi-customer warehouse and distribution space throughout the U.S.

In its “Intermodal Quarterly,” IANA reported that total first quarter volume, at 4,554,850 units, increased 6.3% annually, representing the sixth consecutive quarter of annual growth, following eight straight quarters of annual declines.

This move is expected to have a major impact on online retailers like Shein and Temu, which rely on sending goods directly to U.S. shoppers without paying tariffs.

The report’s first quarter shipment index value, at 75.4, fell 5.8% compared to the fourth quarter 2024, its 11th consecutive sequential decrease, and was off 13.8% annually. First quarter freight spend, at 177.8, fell 2.5% compared to the fourth quarter and was down 8.6% annually.

A report recently issued by ShipMatrix, a subsidiary of Warrendale, Pa.-based SJ Consulting, points to an increasing shift in the parcel marketplace that is having an impact on the parcel duopoly of FedEx and UPS.

Quarterly consolidated revenue, at $21.5 billion, fell 0.7% annually, and adjusted earnings per share, at $1.49 (topping Wall Street estimates of $1.41), rose $0.06 annually. Consolidated operating profit, at $1.7 billion, increased 3.3% annually. 

Discover how advanced 3D cube cartonization technology reduces shipping costs, minimizes packaging waste, and optimizes supply chain efficiency in todays e-commerce-driven logistics landscape.

During this podcast Handfield addressed various topics, including: the current state of the supply chain; steps and actions shippers should consider related to tariffs; how the supply chain is viewed; the need for supply chain resiliency; and supply chain risk mangement planning, among others. 

Commerce reported that March retail sales, at $734.9 billion, increased 1.4% over February and 4.6% annually. NRF reported that March’s retail sales which are based on Census data and exclude automobile dealers, gas stations, and restaurants, increased 0.6% seasonally-adjusted, from February to March, and were up 5.07% on an unadjusted basis annually.

The second quarter edition of the TD Cowen/AFS Freight Index, which was recently released by New York-based investment firm TD Cowen Inc. and Shreveport, La.-based 3PL and freight audit and payment company AFS Logistics LLC, highlighted how various freight transportation modes are dealing with various issues, including tariff-related actions and an anticipated downward shift in consumer confidence, which could potentially impact prospects for a freight market recovery.

In addition to the implementation of sweeping tariffs on United States global trading partners earlier this week, the Executive Order issued by the White House also included language regarding the end of the de minimis treatment, which allows goods under $800 sent from China and Hong Kong to the U.S. to not be subject to tariffs. 

Paul Bingham, S&P Global Market Intelligence Economist, explained that these new tariffs are not surprising, given what was expected—except that some of the individual country levels are higher than initially estimated.

The March Services PMI, at 50.8 (a reading of 50 or higher signals growth) fell 2.7% compared to February, growing, at a slower rate, for the ninth consecutive month, and for the 55th time in the last 58 months, going back to the initial recovery from the pandemic in June 2020.