Today's Supply Chain Pulse
GM Defense and Lockheed Martin forge manufacturing partnership to boost U.S. defense capacity
GM Defense and Lockheed Martin have signed a manufacturing collaboration aimed at expanding U.S. defense production capacity. The alliance will blend GM’s automotive manufacturing expertise with Lockheed’s defense systems to strengthen domestic supply chains.
Also developing:
By the numbers: US IDFC partners with Chubb on $20B maritime reinsurance plan
Crude Report: Hormuz Disruptions Put Canadian Export Crude in the Global Spotlight
In this episode Jeff Kralowitz talks with Argus senior reporter John Kordner about how the recent disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz have boosted Canadian heavy crude exports. With freight rates soaring, Canadian grades are now more competitive than Middle‑East or West African supplies, driving record‑high discounts for WCS Hardisty and premium pricing for TMX shipments to China. The WCS Houston benchmark has seen unprecedented liquidity and volume as Gulf Coast refiners pivot to Canadian heavies, while widening crack spreads further fuel demand. Kordner also discusses the impact of the new Trans Mountain expansion, re‑export flows, and upcoming market outlooks for Asian buyers.
Tariff Refunds: Court Expands Scope to Include Finally Liquidated Entries
The U.S. Court of International Trade broadened a prior order, directing Customs and Border Protection to refund tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) for all import entries, including those already finally liquidated. The amendment follows the...
HEAPGrasp: A Faster, Smarter Way for Robots to Handle Tricky Objects
Researchers at Tokyo University of Science introduced HEAPGrasp, a novel robot grasping system that relies solely on RGB images to reconstruct 3D shapes of transparent, reflective, and opaque objects. By extracting silhouettes from multiple viewpoints and using a shape‑from‑silhouette algorithm...
US Pressures Brussels to Join AI Chips Club
The United States is urging the European Union to join Pax Silica, a Washington‑led club aimed at safeguarding AI‑related semiconductor and mineral supply chains against China. EU officials stalled formal talks on membership, even as Sweden and Greece signed the...
Freight Rates Surge 20% in Q1, Lock In Now
The freight market recovery is underway. @CHRobinson is forecasting a 20% year-over-year increase in spot market dry van rates for Q1, and a 12% increase for the full year. Shippers should lock in rates, deepen relationships with their 3PLs, and...
Iran War Creates Unprecedented Oil Shortage, No Spare Capacity
The Iran war has disrupted a greater share of oil supplies than any previous shock. And this time, there is virtually no spare capacity available to make up the gap. @wsj
Daily Memo: Mediation Efforts, Oil Supplies for Cuba
Foreign ministers from Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia met in Islamabad to explore diplomatic pathways for ending the Iran‑Saudi conflict. The quartet discussed forming a multilateral consortium to oversee commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, proposing a fee...
Dollar General Slashes 1,500 SKUs, Boosts In-Stocks
Dollar General has eliminated more than 1,500 SKUs, driving a leaner product mix and reducing fourth‑quarter merchandise levels by 5.7%, equivalent to a $379 million drop. Inventory fell to $6.3 billion, while in‑stock rates improved by roughly 250 basis points year over...
Sol-Millennium Medical Inc. Launches U.S. B2B eShop, Providing Direct Access to Safety Engineered Medical Devices Nationwide
Sol‑Millennium Medical Inc. has launched a dedicated U.S. B2B e‑commerce platform, b2b.solm.com, allowing healthcare providers nationwide to purchase its safety‑engineered medical devices directly. The site streamlines registration, pricing visibility, and order placement for settings ranging from physician offices to veterinary...
Global Trade Compliance Is Under Strain. Execution Models Must Evolve
Global trade compliance is shifting from a downstream checkpoint to an integral part of supply‑chain execution as enforcement tightens and sanctions screening expands. New regulations increase the risk of costly border delays, prompting firms to embed compliance directly into transaction...
How the Iran War Is Reshaping Kazakhstan’s Role in Eurasia
The Iran‑Russia war has shut the Strait of Hormuz, forcing Central Asian exporters to abandon the Southern Corridor. Kazakhstan’s Trans‑Caspian “Middle Corridor” has surged from 0.8 million to 4.5 million tons between 2020 and 2024, growing over 60 % in 2024 alone. The...
Matson Responds to Growing Cargo Theft in Intermodal Shipments
Matson announced a new cargo‑security program launching in Q2, deploying free security devices on containers traveling from Los Angeles to all BNSF network destinations and positioning them in the lower well of intermodal rail cars for added protection. The initiative responds...
Fluke Reliability Tackles Industry’s Silent Crises
Fluke Reliability highlighted the scale of unplanned downtime at its Xcelerate 26 conference, citing a Censuswide survey where 55% of U.S. manufacturers experienced outages costing up to $207 million weekly. The study revealed an average loss of $400 k per hour and as...
Missile Attack Sparks Renewed Threat to Red Sea Shipping
Iranian‑backed Houthi rebels launched a missile strike against Israel, prompting fears they could extend attacks to commercial vessels in the Red Sea. The threat revives concerns of a renewed blockade of this vital maritime corridor, already strained by Iran’s ongoing...
EU Duty Changes Are Coming. Are You Ready for July?
From 1 July 2026 the EU will scrap the €150 (≈ $165) de minimis exemption, imposing a €3 (≈ $3.30) duty on each imported item. The change targets low‑value parcels that have surged with cross‑border e‑commerce and aims to curb undervaluation. UK brands shipping directly...
Connected Vehicles and the Shift to Real-Time Transportation Execution
Connected vehicle technology is evolving from isolated telemetry tools to a core component of real‑time transportation execution. By integrating telematics data directly into TMS, warehouse systems, and control towers, shippers can adjust routes, update delivery commitments, and coordinate inventory on...
Transportist: April 2026
Transportist’s April 2026 roundup flags a deepening energy crunch in Australia, where diesel shortages are already curbing grocery deliveries and waste collection, and fuel rationing debates resurface. In the United States, aviation faces staffing gaps at TSA and a LaGuardia...
Transportist: April 2026
The Transportist April 2026 briefing highlights a resurgence of fuel rationing talks in Australia as diesel shortages threaten grocery deliveries and waste collection. It also notes a spate of delivery‑robot mishaps in the United States and tightening e‑bike enforcement, with Seattle...
Czechia’s SŽ Targets Foreign Suppliers with Procurement Shake-Up
Czech infrastructure manager Správa železnic (SŽ) will host its first "Suppliers Day" on April 14 to unveil a new procurement framework that breaks large rail contracts into discipline‑specific tenders. The shift aims to lower entry barriers for foreign and smaller...
Louisiana International Terminal Holdings Incorporated as Gulf Coast Container Project Advances
Port of New Orleans incorporated Louisiana International Terminal Holdings LLC as the operating entity for a new container terminal in St. Bernard Parish. The next‑generation facility is slated to generate roughly $33.3 million in annual tax revenue and add 4,339 jobs,...
Hormuz Closure Triggers ‘Havoc’ for Project Logistics Supply Chain
The near‑total closure of the Strait of Hormuz has slashed vessel transits by 97% in the past 25 days, halting all traffic on March 25. The paralysis is driving sky‑high insurance premiums, causing carriers to refuse quotes for cargo entering the...
Centre Approves NMPA’s Proposal to Redevelop Berth No. 9
India’s Union government has approved the New Mangalore Port Authority’s plan to redevelop berth 9 on a PPP DBFOT basis, with an estimated cost of ₹438.29 crore (≈ $53 million). The upgrade will raise the berth draft from 10.5 m to 14 m, with provisions for...
Reeves Urges G7 to Reject Protectionism as Hormuz Crisis Escalates
The Strait of Hormuz blockade, now in its second month, has halted the flow of roughly 21 million barrels of oil per day—about 20% of global consumption—and disrupted 30% of the world’s nitrogen‑based fertilizer trade, sending Brent crude sharply higher. British...
International Business Briefs | Nigerians Face 65% Surge in Fuel Prices
Fuel prices in Nigeria have surged 65% as the newly built 650,000‑bpd Dangote refinery failed to offset market pressures from costly crude imports and debt‑linked export obligations. In the UK, mortgage approvals rose to 62,584 in February, outpacing forecasts, while...
The Impact of Energy Prices on European Paper Packaging Buyers’
A surge in Middle East conflict has pushed European energy prices sharply higher, with the Dutch TTF natural‑gas benchmark jumping from about $33 to $74 per megawatt‑hour, a rise of over 60 percent. Because roughly half of paper‑mill energy in...
Neolix Scales RoboVan-as-a-Service Model, Accelerates Expansion Across China and Overseas
Neolix announced that its RoboVan-as-a-Service (RaaS) model has processed over 1.5 million on‑demand delivery orders and logged more than 40 million kilometers of autonomous driving across Chinese cities. In Qingdao, the company now runs one of the largest single‑city autonomous fleets, handling...
My Freighter Launches New Asia-Europe Routes
Uzbekistan‑based cargo carrier My Freighter has launched weekly Asia‑Europe services linking Hanoi, Bangkok and Almaty to Frankfurt via its Tashkent hub, with a direct Tashkent‑Frankfurt leg starting 29 March. The routes are operated with Boeing 767‑300 freighters, seven of which are passenger‑to‑freighter...
GLP‑1 Weight‑Loss Drugs Prompt Fashion Retailers to Rethink Sizing
Consulting firms are being tapped to help fashion retailers overhaul sizing and supply‑chain strategies as GLP‑1 weight‑loss drugs reach 23% of U.S. households. With 80% of users expecting new clothing and 55% already buying, the shift is upending traditional demand...
Avery Dennison Combats Food Waste with RFID Innovation
Avery Dennison’s new report shows that roughly two‑thirds of retailers still rely on manual inventory counts, driving record meat waste. The study estimates meat waste will cost retailers $94 billion this year and rise to $103 billion by 2030. In response, Avery...
Guidance: Supply Estimates Guidance Manual
The UK Treasury released a 2026 edition of its "Supply Estimates: a guidance manual," updating the original 2011 version. The revision incorporates current parliamentary practices, spending limits, and procedures agreed with Parliament and the National Audit Office, while removing outdated...
Made by Shein: The Ultra-Fast Fashion Giant Is Pitching Itself to Aussie Clothing Labels
Shein is courting Australian fashion labels to join its Xcelerator program, a supply‑chain‑as‑a‑service platform that plugs brands into its AI‑driven manufacturing, logistics and e‑commerce network. The initiative, which already supports 20 brands worldwide and has generated more than $400 million in...
DHL GF Ramps up Asia-Europe Capacity
DHL Global Forwarding is boosting its Asia‑Europe capacity by launching weekly freighter flights from Shanghai to Leipzig and from Liège to Hong Kong, leveraging the DHL Express network. The routes will be operated with Boeing 777F aircraft and include a Tel Aviv stopover...
China’s 90% Model: Blueprint for Global Market Domination
My new book, China's 90% Model, launched on 17th March. I want to share why I wrote it and why I believe leadership teams should read it together. For sixty years I have advised Fortune 500 CEOs and boards across the globe....
Supply Chain Shift: How Far Upstream Does De‑Chinaing Reach?
Call it supply chain shifts or derisking. Moving retail and manufacturing supply away from China to other countries. Given the tiers of suppliers and size, how deep into the upstream supply chain does the change go?
HMND 01 Alpha Goes to Work: Humanoid Completes Automotive Manufacturing Logistics POC with SAP and Martur Fompak
Humanoid’s HMND 01 Alpha wheeled robot completed a live‑production logistics proof of concept with SAP and Martur Fompak, demonstrating autonomous picking and delivery in an automotive factory. The robot received task orders from SAP’s Business AI, navigated to pallets, retrieved KLT...
Buy America Law Stalls Housing, Adds Costly Delays
"A Build America, Buy America law is causing construction delays amid the US housing crisis" 😮 https://t.co/atUt3wR6gr "The waiver process has caused construction delays and hundreds of thousands of dollars in extra costs as the country faces an affordable housing...
Jeffrey Sachs Dismisses Trump's Iran War as Incompetent
'Incompetent Old Man': Jeffrey Sachs Shreds Trump's Iran War, Calls Him ... https://t.co/dbT4n9npIT via @YouTube
US-Iran Conflict Begins to Disrupt India’s Q-Commerce and Logistics Sectors
The US‑Iran conflict is beginning to ripple through India’s quick‑commerce, e‑commerce and logistics ecosystem, driving higher fuel, diesel and urea costs and causing truck delays in key states like Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. Packaging inputs have surged, with plastics up...
Stay Lean: Manage Extra Inventory Without Cash Traps
Holding more inventory? 📦 Extra stock is smart, but don't trap your cash. SAP Business One keeps you lean. Blog: [link] Schedule a meeting with me: https://t.co/ZsEwnG4p2n $SAP #SAPBusinessOne #Inventory #ERP https://t.co/sN516o506O
Procurement's Value Extends Beyond Pure Financial Metrics
“Focusing solely on financial measures belittles Procurement’s true value-add potential in any organization.” 🔗 https://t.co/52PhBYhUof #procurement #purchasing #supplychain https://t.co/M7y3jDsLwG
Freight Rates Surge 12% as Flatbed Capacity Tightens
CH Robinson, the largest freight broker, ups their rate forecast to +12% this year. They also mention the incredible strength of flatbed trucking. According to SONAR, nearly half of all flatbed loads are being rejected by carriers. Source: FreightCaviar https://t.co/zBb6ZV8OkV
Ukrainian Strikes Hit Two Major Russian Oil Ports
Add the very recent Ukrainian attacks on two major Russian oil ports to the mix.
Flatbed Trucking Signals Bullish Freight Market Surge
Despite the noise around the war, this is the most bullish setup we’ve had in the domestic freight market since COVID. The industrials are roaring back, as proven by the strength of flatbed trucking.
Hormuz Strait Events Differ From Administration's Claims
What’s really going on in the straight of Hormuz is NOT what the admin is saying
Kharg Island's Role in US‑Iran Oil Tactics
Can the US "take the oil" from Iran? Does Kharg Island matter? And what can the GCC do about developing bypass pipelines? I discuss with @BeckyCNN @CNN
Australia’s Fuel Crisis: Data Shows Massive Unpreparedness
Seven charts that reveal how unprepared Australia was for the fuel crisis | Australian economy | The Guardian https://t.co/KDhNheGNvo
Tanzania Tightens Borders to Halt Fuel Smuggling
"Tanzania is strengthening border controls to stop the smuggling of fuel to its fuel-strapped neighbors..." https://t.co/4B3f7ssGsi
Ships Aren't in Strait of Hormuz, Just Iranian Waters
If you want to visit the Strait of Hormuz, you have to go out further than the water off Bandar Abbas. They are not even in the Strait. These are ships anchored in Iranian waters.
Hormuz Vessel Traffic Plummets From 300s to 13
Straight of Hormuz Traffic over time. Vessel traffic dropped by Mid 300s in late Feb to 13 the last week. Just to give you a sense.... https://t.co/lVJpLM2VFe
US Secures Rare Earth Processing Amid China Export Dominance
China. Rare earth exports. What about the deal the US made? And the processing of them?