Today's Top Logistics & Supply Chain News

Today's Top Supply Chain and Logistics News From WSJ

By Paul Page

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A plan to revive commercial cargo traffic on New York’s Hudson River is hitting choppy waters. Residents and public officials in communities along the waterway are raising alarms over U.S. Army Corps of Engineers preparations for more barge traffic, the WSJ’s Joseph de Avila reports, saying the freight transport would disturb a scenic riverfront they’ve worked to develop. The showdown is the latest in a series of battles that have flared across the country as shipping and commercial operators have sought to improve infrastructure and the flow of goods across supply chains. The Hudson River plan would add anchorage sites for barges along a 70-mile stretch of the waterway down to Yonkers, just north of New York City. That’s close to the biggest port on the East Coast, but also alongside burgeoning waterfront housing development, an area where one official wants no part of the “reindustrialization” of the Hudson.

U.S. regulators are seeking to forcibly limit how fast trucks can travel on highways. A plan jointly released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration would put a cap of anywhere from 60 to 68 miles per hour on vehicles over 26,000 pounds, but The Associated Press reports the threshold is still to be determined. For the trucking industry, the proposed “speed limiters” would mark a new regulatory requirement on top of others that companies say are raising their costs. Debate over the electronic devices has divided the trucking industry. The American Trucking Associations, the country’s biggest trucking group, backs the limiters, and several big fleet operators already use them, while some truck drivers argue that setting the speed too low will make driving less safe. Operators may have years to adjust, since the new plan would only take in new trucks, not those already on the road.

South Korea’s troubled shipping industry is getting smaller.Shipbuilder STX Offshore & Shipbuilding Co. is the latest to detail deep restructuring plans, the WSJ’s Costas Paris and In-Soo Nam report, saying it will lay off about a third of its workforce and sell off a yard in France as the business restructures under receivership. Korean big shipyards are facing sweeping restructurings led by creditor banks that have struggled to rehabilitate the embattled shipbuilders. The troubles at the yards are part of broader woes in Korean shipping. South Korea’s two big container lines, Hanjin Shipping Co. Ltd. and Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. Ltd. both are trying to rebuild their finances. Hanjin got good news over the weekend when ship owner Seaspan Corp. agreed to lower the carrier’s charter rates, according to local reports, and a key creditor agreed to push back a loan payment.

Turning Congestion Challenges into Operational Opportunities

Congestion in the United States costs nearly $80 billion a year in wasted time and fuel.

ECONOMY & TRADE

Ted S. Warren/Associated Press

Logistics operators have to be wondering just how much longer the retail industry’s inventory drawdown can continue. The latest report on the U.S. economy, the revised measure of second-quarter gross domestic product, showed businesses pulled back on inventories heading into the summer at a faster rate than earlier reported. A $12.4 billion decline in business inventories came even as consumer spending surged, growing 4.4%, the WSJ’s Ben Leubsdorf reports—the strongest growth pace in nearly two years. Consumers and businesses have been moving in opposite directions: business investment on equipment slumped 3.7% in the second quarter. Still, the spring retrenchment could provide a boost for shipping for the rest of the year. PNC Financial Services Group’s Stuart Hoffman notes “businesses have better aligned inventories with demand,” which could boost economic growth over the coming weeks.

QUOTABLE

A vessel that is stopped is a vessel that is not delivering cargo to its destination.

Brian Vahey of the American Waterways Operators, arguing that barges won’t park for long stretches on the Hudson River.

Number of the Day

Top speed for trucks that might be imposed under a federal proposal that would require speed limiting devices on large vehicles on highways.

IN OTHER NEWS

The first detailed U.S. rules for commercial drone flights go into effect today, including pilot licensing requirements and limitations on operations. (WSJ)

A senior German official says negotiations with the U.S. to build a vast trans-Atlantic free-trade zone have failed. (WSJ)

Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen is showing growing conviction the central bank will raise short-term interest rates in the weeks or months ahead. (WSJ)

Canada is facing a disruption in mail service starting today if the postal agency doesn’t agree with a union demand to extend contract talks. (WSJ)

Amazon.com Inc. praised a legislative proposal to overhaul taxation of Internet sales, while other retailers remain wary. (WSJ)

Exxon Mobil Corp., acting amid a global natural gas glut, won’t invest in the next stage of a proposed natural gas export terminal in Alaska. (WSJ)

China set up a state-owned aircraft engine maker, stepping up efforts to develop homegrown aerospace manufacturing. (WSJ)

Discount retailer Big Lots Inc. reported soft comparable-store sales and declining revenue in the last quarter. (WSJ)

Belgium’s Anheuser-Busch InBev NV says it may cut thousands of jobs as it merges operations with brewer SABMiller PLC. (WSJ)

Automotive shipments pushed Mexico’s exports up 0.5% in July. (Reuters)

California Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation banning state funding for new coal-export terminals and called on existing sites to reduce exports. (Long Beach Press-Telegram)

China’s Ministry of Transport released a three-year plan aimed at reducing logistics costs. (Shanghai Daily)

Freight rail service began between the eastern Chinese city of Yiwu and Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan. (Xinhua)

Changing shopping patterns are leading to a surge in demand for warehouse space within the Chicago city limits. (Crain’s)

A study of the impact of sales tax on Amazon.com Inc. sales suggests consumers show little sensitivity to prices at the online retailer. (Internet Retailer)

Amazon plans to open its next physical bookstore in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. (Chicago Tribune)

British grocer Tesco PLC is launching a “click-and-collect” service to compete with Amazon Fresh. (The Telegraph)

Matson Inc. contracted with General Dynamics NASSCO for two new combination cargo vessels for its Hawaii fleet at a total of $511 million. (Business Journals)

The U.S. has spent $313 million this year buying farm produce to alleviate agriculture oversupply. (CNBC)

Supply chain optimization specialist Logility Inc. acquired systems integrator AdapChain Inc. (DC Velocity)

Shipping container maker Singamas Container Holdings Ltd. swung to a $36.6 million loss in the first half of the year. (Seatrade Maritime)

General Electric Co. began construction of a car engine factory in Welland, Ont. (Financial Post)

Volkswagen Group opened a consolidation center in Slovakia to handle inbound goods for 28 production plants across Europe. (Automotive Logistics)

Air cargo handler Worldwide Flight Services named former Menzies Aviation chief Craig Smyth as chief executive, replacing Olivier Bijaoui. (Lloyd’s Loading List)

ABOUT US

Paul Page is deputy editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Follow him at @PaulPage, and follow the entire WSJ Logistics Report team: @brianjbaskin, @lorettachao, @RWhelanWSJ and @EEPhillips_WSJ, and follow the WSJ Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.

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Write to Paul Page at paul.page@wsj.com