Today's Supply Chain Pulse
Logistics volatility declared permanent in 2026 State of Logistics Report
The report finds supply‑chain volatility now a permanent condition, with U.S. logistics costs falling to $2.4 trillion, or 7.8% of GDP, down from $2.6 trillion in 2025. Five structural forces—uneven global growth, tighter financial conditions, geoeconomic realignment, labor constraints, and energy price swings—drive the new normal, while AI and automation reshape operations.
Also developing:
By the numbers: US IDFC partners with Chubb on $20B maritime reinsurance plan
APR Among Industry Organizations to Speak at USTR Hearing
The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) testified before the USTR, warning that a flood of low‑priced PET imports has forced seven U.S. recyclers to shut down, eroding roughly 25% of domestic capacity in the past 15 months. APR highlighted dramatic import spikes—India up 1,200%, Indonesia over 1,100%, Thailand more than 2,200%—and corresponding price drops of 60% or more. The group urged the USTR to invoke Section 301(b) to curb foreign oversupply while exempting Mexico and Canada to preserve North American supply chains. Without intervention, APR says the industry faces further closures and job losses.
Taiwan in Talks with Iran to Free Flag-Carrier Box Ships From the Gulf
Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation and Communications and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are negotiating with Iranian authorities to secure safe passage for eight Taiwanese‑flagged container ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz. The vessels, operated by Evergreen, Yang Ming and...
A Qatari Gas Tanker Passed the Strait of Hormuz
A Qatari LNG tanker, Al Kharaitiyat, became the first vessel to navigate the Strait of Hormuz since the Iran‑Israel war began, using a Tehran‑approved northern route. The transit signals a tentative reopening of a critical oil‑and‑gas corridor, easing some pressure on...
After the Power Crunch, AI Infrastructure Hits a Silicon Wall
A new Center for a New American Security report warns that semiconductor manufacturing – from advanced logic and high‑bandwidth memory to packaging – cannot keep pace with exploding AI demand, creating a near‑term silicon bottleneck. Hyperscalers such as Microsoft, Amazon,...
EXCLUSIVE: ‘Politicians Don’t Appreciate the Value of Logistics to the UK’
Logistics UK’s newly appointed chief executive Ben Fletcher, after 100 days in post, warned that British politicians still treat logistics as a collection of niche, heavily regulated activities rather than a growth engine. He highlighted that the sector employs roughly 2.8 million...
Turkish Ammunition Production in Estonia
Turkey's ARCA Defence is set to open an ammunition‑production facility in Estonia’s Ida‑Viru County, targeting export markets rather than direct supply to the Estonian Defence Forces. The plant will initially manufacture mortar rounds, rockets and NATO‑standard 155 mm M107 artillery shells,...
India Emerges as a Global E-Commerce Fulfilment Hub
India is rapidly transforming from a manufacturing sourcing base into a global e‑commerce fulfilment hub. Grade A warehousing, expanded airport cargo capacity and multimodal corridors are enabling higher outbound parcel volumes to North America, Europe and the Middle East. Logistics operators...
Bob’s Discount Furniture Opens First Combo Store-Distribution Center
Bob’s Discount Furniture launched its first combined retail and distribution center in Solon, Ohio, in February 2026. The hybrid site places a showroom inside a warehouse near major highways, letting the company keep inventory closer to its eight Ohio stores....
Kuehne + Nagel Sorely Missing the ‘Otto Factor’
Kuehne + Nagel, once the gold standard in global forwarding, has struggled since Stefan Paul replaced Detlef Trefzger as CEO in August 2022. Overland margins have eroded, prompting the hire of DSV’s road chief Søren Schmidt to revive the under‑performing truck business. The...
Vicinay Marine, Tecnalia Develop Remote Offshore Mooring Corrosion Sensor
Vicinay Marine and Spain’s research centre Tecnalia have co‑created a sensor that remotely tracks corrosion on offshore mooring lines using electrical resistance measurements. The device provides real‑time section‑loss data, models degradation trends and predicts remaining service life. Validation took place...
Iran-Linked LPG Tanker Signals Indian Ownership Through Hormuz
The LPG tanker Tara Gas, previously linked to Iranian cargoes, is transiting the Strait of Hormuz while declaring Indian crew and ownership. Tracking data show it moving northeast from Dubai, fully laden with LPG on a Tehran‑approved route past Larak Island....
£1.25bn Housing and Demolition Framework Launched
The LHC Procurement Group has launched the £1.25 bn (≈ $1.6 bn) Housing, Regeneration and Demolition (H3) framework for public‑sector clients across the UK. Running for four years with a possible one‑year extension, the framework is split into 12 lots covering new‑build homes,...
Superbalist Founders Turning a 102 Year-Old South African Retailer Into a Serious Temu and Shein Rival
The Foschini Group’s online platform Bash, built by former Superbalist founders, posted a 40% year‑on‑year sales jump to R1.4 billion and a 52% surge in gross profit to R521 million in the six months to September 2025. Its share of TFG’s total sales...
Korea’s Biggest Manufacturers Back Config, the TSMC of Robot Data
Config, a Seoul‑San Jose startup that supplies the data layer for robotic foundation models, closed an oversubscribed $27 million seed round led by Samsung Venture Investment, bringing total funding to $35 million and valuing the company at over $200 million. Backed by the...
Berg Propulsion to Supply Systems for India’s Green Tug Pair
Berg Propulsion won a contract to supply electric propulsion and integration technology for two all‑electric harbor tugs built under India’s Green Tug Transition Program. The 33.55‑meter vessels, slated for delivery in Q4 2027, will provide 60 tonnes of bollard pull and rely...
Tesla Beats Rivian on Margins but Rivian’s R2 Sparks Growth‑Stock Debate
Tesla’s first‑quarter earnings showed a 52% jump in adjusted EPS and a margin rebound, while the company announced a $25 bn capital‑expenditure plan for 2026. Rivian reported a modest revenue rise but a widening loss and a higher‑priced R2 SUV, leaving...
TransLogistica Romania 2026: Setting the Stage for the Fifth Edition of the Region’s Leading Logistics Hub
TransLogistica Romania announced its fifth edition, set for September 8‑10, 2026 at Romexpo in Bucharest. The expo will prioritize rail and multimodal connectivity, positioning the country as a strategic gateway between East and West. Organizers aim to foster high‑level partnerships while tackling...
Oil Prices Jump 2.4% as Hormuz Closure Fuels Global Supply‑Chain Shock
Brent crude surged 2.4% to $103.76 a barrel after the United States and Iran failed to secure a cease‑fire deal, leaving the Strait of Hormuz largely shut. The closure is driving a cascade of supply‑chain disruptions across oil, food and...
Trump‑Xi Summit Targets Extension of Critical Minerals Truce Amid Trade and Geopolitical Tensions
President Donald Trump arrives in Beijing for a two‑day summit with Xi Jinping, where the leaders will negotiate an extension of the critical‑minerals truce that keeps Chinese rare‑earths flowing to the United States. The talks also cover trade, Iran, Taiwan...
BOS Better Online Solutions (BOSC): Defense Supply Chain Integrator
Better Online Solutions (BOSC), an Israeli defense supply‑chain integrator listed on NASDAQ, was featured in a live Business Breakdown with CEO Eyal Cohen. Cohen outlined the company’s three core divisions—electromechanical connector integration, RFID solutions, and robotic cells—serving major defense customers...
TrendForce Warns AI Surge Is Tightening 3nm Wafer and Advanced Packaging Supply
Research firm TrendForce says exploding AI demand since 2023 is straining 3nm–2nm wafer output and 2.5D/3D advanced packaging, turning TSMC's 3nm capacity into a contested scarce resource. The firm projects a modest easing of 2.5D packaging shortages by 2027 after...
Sony and TSMC Launch AI‑focused Image Sensor JV in Kumamoto
Sony Semiconductor Solutions and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. have agreed to create a joint venture in Kumamoto, Japan, to develop AI‑optimized image sensors. The partnership aims to combine Sony's sensor expertise with TSMC's advanced process technology, targeting next‑generation camera and...
Hormuz, Hydrocarbons, and India: What the Current West Asia Conflict Means for Indian Oil and Gas Markets
The West Asia conflict has highlighted India’s heavy reliance on oil, LNG and LPG imports that flow through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint handling roughly a quarter of global seaborne oil trade. About 88% of India’s crude, 60% of...
Saxon Unmanned Taps IGCS and Lacks to Boost U.S. UAV Output
Saxon Unmanned announced a partnership with IGCS International and Lacks Enterprises to produce its Monitor VTOL, VIPER, Atlas and Titan drones in a high‑volume, 100% U.S. facility. The alliance leverages IGCS’s 80,000‑sq‑ft composites hub and Lacks’s injection‑molding capacity to accelerate...
Europe’s Cumulative EV Investment Passes €200bn
Europe has now committed roughly $215 bn to its electric‑vehicle supply chain, a milestone tracked by New AutoMotive. Eighty percent of that capital was pledged in the past four years across gigafactories, OEM retooling, charging networks and raw‑material projects. However, only...
Nova Delivers Antimony Mining Equipment
Nova Minerals delivered more than 1.5 million pounds of equipment and supplies via a 90‑mile winter trail to its Estelle project in Alaska. The haul, funded by a $43.4 million Defense Production Act Title III grant, equips the company to upgrade the airstrip,...
US‑China Talks Target Chinese Purchases of Key U.S. Exports
"Discussions will focus largely on trade issues, namely the Chinese purchases of American agricultural goods, energy products and aerospace technologies such as Boeing airplanes, a senior U.S. official said. The leaders will also discuss establishing a U.S.-China board of trade...
Shanghai Tesla Exports Drive Profitability Amid Low Domestic Margins
the more Shanghai production Tesla is able to export the higher the factory's profitability. China has extreme price competition so low margins. high margins EU, ASEAN, SK and Japanese exports. $TSLA
UK Steel Welcomes Nationalisation of British Steel
The UK government announced plans to place British Steel back into public ownership after a commercial sale proved unviable. Prime Minister Keir Starmer framed the move as a "decisive step" to safeguard a strategically vital part of the steel supply...
Transformer Shortages Stall Half of US AI Data Centers
Transformer equipment shortages (the electrical kind, not the AI kind) are delaying nearly half of planned U.S. AI data center builds, with an 18-month backlog on new orders. https://t.co/FW7XpwA2w6 #ArtificialIntelligence #Innovation #Technology #Tech #TechNews https://t.co/2lVF9UuZd9
US Ramps up Exports as China Curtails Imports
"the United States has responded by cranking up exports, while China has slashed imports" https://t.co/09kxu4zCqF https://t.co/jQMwClxNcB
Iran Ceasefire Tested as Drone Sets Cargo Ship Aflame Off Qatar, Raising Gulf Shipping Risks
A drone strike ignited a cargo ship 23 nautical miles northeast of Doha, prompting the UAE and Kuwait to shoot down additional drones. The incident underscores the fragility of the month‑old Iran‑U.S. ceasefire and threatens oil flow through the Strait...
Chinese Refiners Ask to Curb Output Amid Rising Oil Costs
Lots of confusion out there about what is going on with China’s oil supply. Not sure if this adds any clarity though
Burger King Pilots AI Assistant “Patty” To Monitor Inventory and Staff in Drive‑thrus
Burger King has begun testing an AI assistant called “Patty” that listens to drive‑thru conversations, flags inventory gaps and suggests managerial actions. Executives say the tool will free managers for customer‑facing work, while employees worry it adds a layer of...
Diageo Commits €400 Million to Expand Kildare Brewery, Boosting Irish Beer Output
Diageo announced a €400 million (about $430 million) investment to build a second brewery at its Littleconnell site in County Kildare. The expansion, unveiled by CEO Sir Dave Lewis and Taoiseach Micheál Martin, will double the plant’s capacity and underlines the company’s growth...
GE Vernova Announces Maraen Port of Nigg for Dogger Bank B and C Phases
GE Vernova has named Scotland’s Maraen Port of Nigg as the marshalling hub for the upcoming B and C phases of the Dogger Bank Wind Farm. The hub will store and prep GE’s Haliade‑X turbine components before they are shipped...
Family‑Owned Hollywood Service Firms Shut Down as Film Production Slumps
Legacy providers of set storage, transportation and costume rentals are closing as Los Angeles film shoot days have fallen nearly 50% since 2019. The wave of shutdowns, highlighted by Triscenic Production Services and Quixote, underscores a broader contraction in the...
Saudi Aramco Q1 Profit Jumps 25% to $32.5 Bn as East‑West Pipeline Offsets Hormuz Blockade
Saudi Aramco reported a 25% rise in first‑quarter profit to $32.5 bn, driven by higher oil prices and volumes shipped through its East‑West pipeline. The surge comes as the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed due to the U.S.–Iran conflict, forcing...
Astral Launches Nairobi-Asmara Freighter Route
Astral Aviation has inaugurated a weekly freighter service linking Nairobi, Kenya, and Asmara, Eritrea, aiming to boost trade across the Horn of Africa. The route connects Eritrea to Astral’s broader network that reaches Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe....
EBay Launches Curated Directory of Approved Seller Tools
eBay announced a new, publicly accessible directory of vetted third‑party providers on May 8, promising to simplify inventory, listing, fulfillment and advertising workflows for its marketplace sellers. The rollout arrives as the inkFrog listing tool prepares to close, prompting questions about...
China Launches Tianzhou-10 Cargo Spacecraft to Resupply Tiangong Space Station
China sent the Tianzhou-10 cargo vessel aloft on May 11, 2026, using a Long March-7 Y11 rocket from Wenchang. The spacecraft docked with the Tianhe core module of the Tiangong space station, delivering fresh supplies and underscoring Beijing's push for...
AI as a Defining Force in Procurement Evolution
Artificial intelligence has moved from experimental pilots to a core capability in procurement, with about 75 % of chief procurement officers expecting it to reshape operations. Executives liken the impact to the internet era, signaling AI as a strategic imperative rather...
CIOs Rise to the Global Challenge
Geopolitical volatility, from the Iran war’s impact on data centers to looming semiconductor shortages, is reshaping CIO priorities worldwide. CIOs must now balance modest AI funding with tighter budget scrutiny, tighter vendor management, and heightened compliance across fragmented regulatory regimes....
Direct Oslo – Berlin Train Will Be Back in 2028 After 20-Year Hiatus
A direct Oslo‑Berlin train service will launch in summer 2028, ending a 20‑year hiatus. The route, a joint venture between Norway’s Vy, Denmark’s DSB and Germany’s Deutsche Bahn, will run twice daily on Talgo ICE L trainsets with restaurant, family and...
US Container Imports Dip in April Amid Middle East and Trade Tensions
U.S. container imports slipped 5.5% year‑over‑year in April, totaling 2.28 million TEUs, according to Descartes. Imports from China fell 15.3% YoY, more than a third below the July 2024 peak, while other origins showed mixed results. West Coast ports reclaimed market share...
Rethink Procurement KPIs: Do They Still Define Success?
“If you could build your Procurement function from scratch today, would your current KPIs still define ‘success’ appropriately?” ➤ https://t.co/K3VAVdMUos #procurement #purchasing #supplychain https://t.co/j9jYk9Ied2
India-Bound Fertilizer Shipment Scrapped over Iran Origin Risk
India’s April urea tender lost a roughly 300,000‑ton cargo after Aditya Birla Global Trading withdrew the shipment on the bulk carrier Infinity, citing concerns that the fertilizer originated from Iran and could breach U.S. sanctions. The move follows heightened scrutiny...
Vanuatu Clears Top Timber as the Solomon Islands Eyes Pacific Push
Top Timber Company, one of the Solomon Islands’ largest sawn‑timber exporters, successfully completed an eight‑month biosecurity audit in April 2026, earning positive feedback from Biosecurity Solomon Islands. The audit, backed by Australian technical assistance through the Solomon Islands Biosecurity Development Program,...
6 Tips for Reviewing Vendor Contract Terms
Performance guarantees such as "zero increase" pricing are now common in health‑benefit vendor renewals, but their real value hinges on precise contract language. Brokers must verify what costs are covered, how baselines are set, and which exclusions apply. Clear measurement...
Shell Selects New Wave Offshore for Orca Project in Santos Basin
Shell has appointed New Wave Offshore Energy to deliver marine warranty survey services for its Orca project in Brazil's pre‑salt Santos Basin. The Orca development is estimated to hold roughly 370 million barrels of recoverable resources. New Wave’s contract covers vessel...