Inflation worries resulted in a decline in small-business optimism to the lowest point in nine months, according to the National Federation of Independent Business' sentiment index for February. "While inflation pressures have eased since peaking in 2021, small-business owners are still managing the elevated costs of higher prices and interest rates," says NFIB's Bill Dunkelberg.

Foodservice, industrial and JanSan distributor Imperial Dade is acquiring New York City-area firm JAD Building Maintenance Supplies in the company's sixth acquisition of the year. JAD serves the janitorial and building maintenance segments, and the acquisition is expected to boost its product offerings. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

US retail sales excluding gas and autos increased 1.06% month over month in February and 0.95% when also excluding restaurants, according to the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor. "While the future direction of interest rates and inflation remains uncertain, it's clear that a strong job market and increases in real wages are continuing to support spending," said National Retail Federation President and CEO Matthew Shay.

A study from the Food and Agriculture Organization indicates that roughly 14% of food spoils before reaching retailers, but companies can mitigate the financial losses and environmental impacts of perishable food spoilage by investing in a data-driven approach that allows for real-time response, writes Amir Taichman of Unity SCM. Utilizing data can help industry stakeholders identify potential areas of disruption, conduct risk assessments and develop contingency plans, Taichman advises.

Businesses with a diverse supplier base yield a 133% greater return on procurement investments than those lacking supplier diversity, yet governments, large corporations and organizations spend only 1% with women-owned businesses, according to research reports. SAP's Elizabeth Vazquez and Etosha Thurman propose companies focus "on the right access, data, technology and overall approach" to boost female supplier diversity.

Humanoid robots that can be inserted into any fulfillment process will require training. Google has developed the Genie robot, which can learn the necessary actions by watching videos of those actions. If developed further, future robots' central machine learning and AI platforms could be coded like a video game to train them to move through 3D space to perform tasks, a development best suited for humanoid, bipedal robot systems.

Business-to-business agency leaders offer advice on the most effective lead-generation content, including Transmission's Stuart Roberts, who recommends customer-centric content and solves specific pain points. "Unless your business is at the forefront of B2B innovation or changing the very fabric of your industry, stop dressing up a sales pitch as thought leadership. Inform, entertain, inspire, educate," Roberts says.

Asset owners in Europe and Asia showed increased appetite for ESG considerations between 2021 and 2023, while those in the US are taking ESG factors into consideration less, a survey by Coalition Greenwich has showed. In Europe 94% of respondents said they consider ESG factors, up from 87% in 2021, while 86% of Asian respondents said they did, up from 71% previously. In the US the number fell from 37% to 32%.

The consumer price index was up 0.4% last month and gained 3.2% on a year-over-year basis, according to the Labor Department. Overall, inflation numbers were a little stronger than expected, and some analysts say they will effectively eliminate the possibility of interest-rate cuts before June. However, Eric Rosengren, a previous head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, predicted that the numbers likely won't change fundamental expectations for three cuts this year.

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