Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Project44 tallies supply chain impacts of a turbulent 2024

photo of container ship cruising

Report predicts 2025 trends will include increased automation at ports and supply chains; shifts in global trade patterns due to tariffs; more severe natural disasters; and a return of freight flows to the Suez Canal.

Following a year in which global logistics networks were buffeted by labor strikes, natural disasters, regional political violence, and economic turbulence, the supply chain visibility provider Project44 has compiled the impact of each of those events in a new study.

The “2024 Year in Review” report lists the various transportation delays, freight volume restrictions, and infrastructure repair costs of a long string of events. Those disruptions include labor strikes at Canadian ports and postal sites, the U.S. East and Gulf coast port strike; hurricanes Helene, Francine, and Milton; the Francis Scott key Bridge collapse in Baltimore Harbor; the CrowdStrike cyber attack; and Red Sea missile attacks on passing cargo ships.


“While 2024 was characterized by frequent and overlapping disruptions that exposed many supply chain vulnerabilities, it was also a year of resilience,” the Project44 report said. “From labor strikes and natural disasters to geopolitical tensions, each event served as a critical learning opportunity, underscoring the necessity for robust contingency planning, effective labor relations, and durable infrastructure. As supply chains continue to evolve, the lessons learned this past year highlight the increased importance of proactive measures and collaborative efforts. These strategies are essential to fostering stability and adaptability in a world where unpredictability is becoming the norm.”

In addition to tallying the supply chain impact of those events, the report also made four broad predictions for trends in 2025 that may affect logistics operations. In Project44’s analysis, they include:

  • More technology and automation will be introduced into supply chains, particularly ports. This will help make operations more efficient but also increase the risk of cybersecurity attacks and service interruptions due to glitches and bugs. This could also add tensions among the labor pool and unions, who do not want jobs to be replaced with automation.
  • The new administration in the United States introduces a lot of uncertainty, with talks of major tariffs for numerous countries as well as talks of US freight getting preferential treatment through the Panama Canal. If these things do come to fruition, expect to see shifts in global trade patterns and sourcing.
  • Natural disasters will continue to become more frequent and more severe, as exhibited by the wildfires in Los Angeles and the winter storms throughout the southern states in the U.S. As a result, expect companies to invest more heavily in sustainability to mitigate climate change.
  • The peace treaty announced on Wednesday between Isael and Hamas in the Middle East could support increased freight volumes returning to the Suez Canal as political crisis in the area are resolved.

More Stories

chart of consumer spending

Consumers “took a breather” on January spending after holiday rush

Shoppers spent less in January than they did during the busy holiday month before but retail sales had strong year-over-year gains nonetheless, according to the CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor, powered by Affinity Solutions, released today by the National Retail Federation (NRF).

“Consumers pulled back in January, taking a breather after a stronger-than-expected holiday season,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said in the report. “Despite the monthly decline, the year-over-year increases reflect overall consumer strength as a strong job market and wage gains above the rate of inflation continue to support spending. We’re seeing a ‘choiceful’ and value-conscious consumer who is rotating spending across goods and services and essentials and non-essentials, boosting some sectors while causing challenges in others.”

Total retail sales, excluding automobiles and gasoline, were down 1.07% seasonally adjusted month over month but up 5.44% unadjusted year over year in January, according to the Retail Monitor. That compared with increases of 1.74% month over month and 7.24% year over year in December.

Likewise, the Retail Monitor calculation of core retail sales (excluding restaurants in addition to automobile dealers and gasoline stations) was down 1.27% month over month in January but up 5.72% year over year. That compared with increases of 2.19% month over month and 8.41% year over year in December.

NRF says that unlike survey-based numbers collected by the Census Bureau, its Retail Monitor uses actual, anonymized credit and debit card purchase data compiled by Affinity Solutions and does not need to be revised monthly or annually.

Logistics economy picked up speed in January

Logistics Managers' Index

Logistics economy picked up speed in January

Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded in January, growing at its fastest clip in nearly two years, according to the latest Logistics Managers’ Index (LMI) report, released this week.

The LMI jumped nearly five points from December to a reading of 62, reflecting continued steady growth in the U.S. economy along with faster-than-expected inventory growth across the sector as retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers attempted to manage the uncertainty of tariffs and a changing regulatory environment. The January reading represented the fastest rate of expansion since June 2022, the LMI researchers said.

Keep ReadingShow less
photos of white house and a loaded containership

Supply chain groups push back on Trump tariff plan

Industry groups across the spectrum of supply chain operations today are pushing back against the Trump Administration plan to apply steep tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China, saying the additional fees are taxes that will undermine their profit margins, slow their economic investments, and raise prices for consumers.

Even as a last-minute deal today appeared to delay the tariff on Mexico, that deal is set to last only one month, and tariffs on the other two countries are still set to go into effect at midnight tonight.

Keep ReadingShow less
containers stacked at yard

U.S. manufacturers scramble to avoid pain of tariff war

Businesses are scrambling today to insulate their supply chains from the impacts of a trade war being launched by the Trump Administration, which is planning to erect high tariff walls on Tuesday against goods imported from Canada, Mexico, and China.

Tariffs are import taxes paid by American companies and collected by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Agency as goods produced in certain countries cross borders into the U.S.

Keep ReadingShow less
Five men in business casual attire sit in chairs in front of a projected slide that says, "CSCMP Mexico City Roundtable Inauguration, Semiconductors: Mexico & the United States."

CSCMP President and CEO Mark Baxa (holding microphone) introduces a panel discussion on the state of the semiconductor industry at the inaugural meeting of the Mexico City CSCMP Roundtable.

CSCMP

CSCMP launches Mexico City Roundtable

With the inaugural meeting of the Mexico City Roundtable on January 23, the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) marked a significant step forward in its efforts to expand its presence in Latin America.

The meeting, held at the Mexico City campus of the research university Tecnológico de Monterrey, kicked off with presentations from CSCMP President and CEO Mark Baxa, Country Manager Javier Zarazúa, and Jonathan Albañil of the logistics service provider Dicka Logistics.

Keep ReadingShow less