The US employment cost index rose 1.2% in the first quarter, an acceleration from the 0.9% increase in Q4 2023, according to the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said. Wage increases grew 1.1% from the previous quarter and 4.4% from a year earlier, while benefits costs increased 1.1% and 3.7%, respectively.

Food, dairy and beverage processing distributor Nelson-Jameson is holding a grand opening at its new Jerome, Idaho, distribution center this week. The 45,000-square-foot facility is the company's fifth DC and includes storage, office space, refrigerated storage areas and a service and maintenance area. Nelson-Jameson also incorporated energy-saving features such as insulated concrete tilt wall panels, occupancy sensors, high-efficiency HVAC systems and LED lighting.

The Conference Board's consumer confidence index, which reflects Americans' outlook on the next six months, fell to a reading of 97 in April from 103.1 in March. An index gauging short-term expectations on income and the job market fell to 66.4, from 74 the previous month.

Lidar has the potential to increase operational speed, cut the cost of shipping and maximize storage in the supply chain, says Peipei Zhao, North America president of Robosense. Lidar is useful for multiple components of logistics and throughout the warehouse, asserts Zhao, noting that its ability to assess items in three dimensions is helpful.

No vendor or logistics provider came out of the pandemic and the last years' economic challenges unscathed, which provides an opportunity to learn from the rapid adjustments and incorporate the lessons going forward, said panelists at the Manifest conference in Las Vegas. "Analytics is the key to success, because if you can't measure how well you're doing something, I don't see how you can optimize and react quickly," said Gary Allen, vice president of supply chain excellence for Ryder.

Digital technology and AI are transforming sales teams and what is expected of them, but studies show that organizations can also use technology to increase profit, streamline sales functions and deliver detailed insights, writes Patrick McKeever, president of Durrie Sales. McKeever writes that technology can help meet shoppers' increased demand for product data and details, help sales teams generate and act on qualified leads, and offer manufacturers more visibility into customer data and product usage.

The Federal Reserve will likely maintain higher interest rates for an extended period due to firmer-than-expected inflation in early 2024, despite market expectations of rate cuts this year. During an upcoming press conference Wednesday, Chair Jerome Powell is widely expected to emphasize the necessity of this approach to curb economic overheating, indicating potentially no rate cuts in the near future.

Cheryl Robinson, the host of the Embrace the Pivot podcast, writes that cultural change can be accomplished at companies by focusing on proactive rather than reactive leadership. "Proactive leadership entails anticipating challenges and opportunities rather than merely responding to them," writes Robinson.

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The market profiling software-as-a-service BI tool platform strengthens market analysis for distributors and manufacturers. MDM Analytics profiles U.S., Canada and Mexico markets across 13 major product categories (with 200+ subcategories) including: Chemicals, Construction, Controls, DataComm, Electrical, Fluid Power, MROP, Material Handling, Packaging, Plastics, Power Transmission, Rubber Products and Welding/Gases. Click here for full story.