Freight and parcel carriers shed more than 14,000 jobs in June and trucking employment dropped slightly and has remained nearly flat since March, while warehouse jobs continued eight consecutive months of declines by shedding 6,900 from payrolls, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Industry experts attribute the declines to softening consumer demand, a greater emphasis among retailers for in-store and curbside pickup and increased automation that requires fewer workers.
US wholesale inventories were largely unchanged in May, a revision from the 0.1% previously reported, according to the Commerce Department. Wholesale sales dropped 0.2%, while the inventory-to-sales ratio increased from 1.40 months to 1.41 months, up from 1.30 a year earlier.
Business groups are calling on the Canadian government to help settle the current strike among 7,400 members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada that's led to a slow down in the movement of goods and a backlog of 23 commercial vessels. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce's Robin Guy says the affected ports handle more than $600 million worth of cargo daily and the National Retail Federation's Jonathan Gold says US retailers whose merchandise comes through Canada could see delays.
Much has changed in supply chains over the past year, with severe backlogs yielding to excess transportation supply and falling prices. All indications are that the crisis has now passed, and Garth Friesen examines improvements across ocean freight, shipping container prices, barge transportation, air cargo, trucking and warehousing.
Hydrogen is an ideal, sustainable way to power heavy freight transportation, said participants at a hydrogen fuel conference in Sacramento, Calif. The conference came as the public-private Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems seeks federal grants to support creation of a hydrogen energy hub in California.
Increasing inventory levels, decreasing demand and cost increases means distributors will need to ensure their purchasing, inventory strategies, pricing and sales practices work in tandem to drive profit growth, writes John Gunderson of Dorn Group. Gunderson outlines three proven strategies to maintain profitability, including cutting costs, increasing automation efficiency and using data analytics to plug "holes in your current profit bucket."
Just over 80% of business-to-business marketers think creative effectiveness is crucial for successful campaigns, according to research by Marketing Week and Kantar. In addition, slightly more than 62% of B2B marketers say they have increased their focus on creative effectiveness.
Marketing experts say generative AI tools that use prompts to create content and images will have a "seismic impact on digital advertising" that can be likened to the advent of social media, which drove significant changes in marketing output, volume and targeting personalization. They expect AI advancements to further propel its use within digital advertising, but note brand safety, quality and potential legal issues remain current hurdles.
Giving actionable feedback is a crucial -- yet sometimes unnatural part -- part of effective leadership. One way for leaders to improve is to learn from the example of top-notch teachers, who provide so-called "agentic feedback," in which they direct students to examine specific parts of their work that need improvement.
