E-commerce

By Jeff Berman · November 3, 2020
The study, entitled “The Great Holiday Rewrite: Supply Chain in the COVID Era,” was based on feedback from 600 U.S.-based consumers and 519 U.S.-based supply chain professionals within midsize to large retail or CPG brands who also have familiarity with freight booking and management practices.

By Jeff Berman · November 2, 2020
In its monthly Manufacturing Report on Business, ISM said that the report’s key metric, the PMI, hit 59.3 (a reading of 50 or higher indicates growth), which topped September’s 55.4 by 3.9%, while growing at a faster rate for the fifth consecutive month, while the overall economy grew for the sixth consecutive month.

By Jeff Berman · October 29, 2020
The report’s third quarter National Shipment Index—at 114.9—was up 6% compared to the second quarter and down 7.6% annually. This followed a 7.6% decline, from the first quarter to the second quarter. On the spending side, the report’s third quarter spend index—at 186.0—was up 14.6%, from the second quarter to the third, and was off 7.3% annually. The sequential gain nearly erased the 13.7% spending decrease, from the first quarter to the second quarter.

By Jeff Berman · October 29, 2020
As the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has had the effect of uprooting supply chain and logistics operations for shippers across various verticals, Minneapolis, Minn.-based global logistics services provider and freight forwarder C.H. Robinson today highlighted how it has focused on one segment that literally applies to everyone—the grocery sector.

By Jeff Berman · October 28, 2020
Quarterly revenue, at $21.2 billion, increased 15.9% annually, and adjusted earnings per share, at $2.28, was up 10.1% compared to a year ago, far outpacing Wall Street expectations, at $1.67. Net income, at $2.0 billion, was up 11.8% annually, and operating profit rose 11.0%, to $2.4 billion.

By Jeff Berman · October 21, 2020
Logistics Management Group News Editor Jeff Berman recently caught up with Richard Howells, VP of Solution Marketing for SAP Digital Supply Chain. Howells provided a detailed overview of how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted logistics and supply chain operations, as well as key aspects of inventory management, and what we may expect a year from now, among other topics.

By Jeff Berman · October 20, 2020
Total September shipments—at 1,617,044—were up 8.6% annually. Domestic containers—at 715,240—were up 14.4%, while trailers—at 109,623—were up 16.2%. All domestic equipment—at 824,863—was up 14.6%. ISO, or international, containers—at 792,181—saw a 2.9% increase.

By LM Staff · October 16, 2020
Commerce reported that total September retail sales—at $549.3 billion—were up 1.9% over August and were up 5.4% annually. And NRF pointed to September retail sales, which were paced by apparel, continuing a V-shaped recovery from the pandemic, with sales growing for the fourth consecutive month.

By Jeff Berman · October 16, 2020
The September edition of the DAT Truckload Volume Index, which was issued this week by DAT Freight & analytics, an online marketplace for spot market truckload freight, picked up where August left off, posting all-time highs for spot market rates for van and refrigerated, or reefer, truckload freight.

By LM Staff · October 16, 2020
The August TCI, which is the month for which the most recent data is available, came in at 8.31, which is in line with what the firm called a “very favorable rate environment for trucking during the month.” This reading marked a significant improvement over July’s 2.84, and marked its second-highest reading, going back to March 2018, with the exception of June’s 11.35, the highest reading over the last decade.

By Jeff Berman · October 15, 2020
Some of the main takeaways of the report, entitled “Last Touch, Lasting Impact: The 2020-2021 Edition,” which was based on survey results from more than 1,400 e-commerce customers across North America, noted how North American consumers indicated they have increased online shopping by 33% over the last year, with around two-thirds saying the majority of their shopping is handled online, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

By Jeff Berman · October 13, 2020
With e-commerce activity reaching unprecedented levels, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it has brought an increased focus on this week’s Amazon Prime Days, which are Tuesday, October 13 and Wednesday, October 14. The global e-commerce titan has often described Amazon Prime Days as “a 2-day parade of epic deals,” and there is no question that remains the case today, too. Now in its sixth year, Amazon Prime Days have become an event eagerly awaited and anticipated by consumers, and, from Amazon’s perspective, the logistics planning and preparation it requires by Amazon grows incrementally by the year.

By Jeff Berman · October 13, 2020
As more consumers remain hunkered down at home, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the parcel sector continues to reap the benefits, in the form of increasing volumes. It is fair to say that was a key finding in the Parcel Shipping Index, which was issued this week by Stamford, Ct.-based Pitney Bowes, a global technology services provider of commerce solutions powering billions of transactions.

By John D. Schulz · October 12, 2020
The confluence of COVID-induced disruptions to supply chains and unpredictable trucking demand levels will mean sharply higher truckload rates well into 2021, a leading TL executive is predicting. Mark Rourke, president and CEO of Schneider, the nation’s second-largest truckload carrier, said the nation’s supply chains are in “a highly unique period” in our recent history.

By Jeff Berman · October 9, 2020
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic continuing to change myriad aspects of everyday life, holiday season shopping is clearly not an exception, according to the 2020 U.S. Retail Holiday Trends Guide, which was issued this week by Los Angeles-based industrial real estate firm CBRE. The wide-ranging report addresses various ways in which the 2020 holiday shopping season will be different from any other.