Today's Top Supply Chain and Logistics News From WSJ
May 19 2017 - 6:11AM
Dow Jones News
By Brian Baskin
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc. may have solved a problem that's so far
eluded most of its competitors: how to draw new customers to both
its website and its stores. While rivals like Target Corp. are
reporting sagging sales and declining foot traffic, Wal-Mart's
same-store revenue rose 1.4% in the first quarter, the WSJ's Sarah
Nassauer and Anne Steele report. The gains complement a 63% surge
in U.S. e-commerce sales, and indicate that the company's strategy
of investing both in store improvements and online operations is
starting to pay off. Those efforts include a campaign to reduce
inventory in stores that has placed additional pressures on
suppliers. Wal-Mart is also blurring the lines between its
e-commerce and brick-and-mortar businesses by encouraging customers
to pick up online orders in stores. One problem Wal-Mart hasn't
cracked: how to boost sales without sacrificing margins. Profits
were down 1.3% in the first quarter, as spending on stores and
technology rose, and the company cut prices on some goods to fend
off competitors.
General Motors Co. may be closing car dealerships in India, but
the company plans to keep its supply chain in the country intact.
GM has made little headway in India's fast-growing auto market,
selling about as many cars there in a year as it does in just a few
days in the U.S. The company has found more success in tapping
India's cheap labor market, operating an assembly plant in
Maharashtra that tripled production volume to 53,000 vehicles in
2016 - or nearly double the number sold in India. The plant, plus a
design and engineering center in Bangalore, will remain open even
after GM halts sales, the WSJ's Mike Colias writes. By contrast, GM
is selling its manufacturing capabilities in South Africa, another
country where it plans to end sales in order to focus on core
markets like the U.S., China and South America. The retrenchment
also comes as GM spends hundreds of millions of dollars on
developing self-driving cars and other technology to stay ahead of
new competitors emerging in Silicon Valley.
CSX Corp. executives say their newly installed CEO's health
problems aren't slowing his efforts to modernize the railway. Chief
Executive Hunter Harrison has at times relied on a portable oxygen
machine, raising questions among investors about his stamina as he
works to overhaul CSX's operations, the WSJ's Paul Ziobro writes.
Mr. Harrison has only been in the job for 10 weeks, but he has
already pushed through major changes, such as closing "hump yards,"
where trains roll downhill to be steered toward their next
destination. CSX's chief financial officer says that trains are
already moving faster and arriving on time more frequently - and
that Mr. Harrison has been "equally blunt and equally as effective"
with or without supplemental oxygen. But some investors are worried
about Mr. Harrison's long-term ability to run the company. That's
complicating a June 5 shareholder vote on whether to pay him $84
million to replace the pay package he forfeited by leaving his
previous job at the helm of Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.
ECONOMY & TRADE
Plenty of trucking startups pitch themselves as the "Uber for
freight." Now they'll have to contend with Uber Technologies Inc.
itself. The ride-sharing company has publicly launched its app,
which allows shippers and truckers to arrange freight
transportation using their smartphones. Uber joins a field crowded
with numerous startups, which say they're cheaper, more-convenient
alternatives to traditional freight brokers. Uber's track record in
software and managing data will help, but the company will likely
need to undercut the commission taken by brokerages to gain
significant market share, Ryan Petersen, founder of shipping
startup Flexport, tells Wired. Many online freight booking services
say they're seeing explosive growth, albeit from low levels. Much
of that business comes from small shippers, however, and Silicon
Valley has yet to show it can make inroads with big retailers and
manufacturers that make up traditional brokers' core customers.
QUOTABLE
IN OTHER NEWS
The Trump administration told Congress it will launch formal
talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement.
(WSJ)
International Business Machines Corp. ordered thousands of
remote workers to relocate to regional offices or leave the
company. (WSJ)
Japan's economy expanded for a fifth-straight quarter, fueled by
booming manufacturing exports. (WSJ)
The Conference Board's index of leading economic indicators rose
for a fourth month in April. (WSJ)
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. reported a 60% jump in fiscal
fourth-quarter revenue from a year earlier. (WSJ)
Tesla Inc. has leased the largest-ever warehouse in the San
Francisco Bay area. (Inbound Logistics)
The Port of San Francisco is seeking a new bidder to save one of
its last remaining shipyards. (San Francisco Examiner)
The Port of Charleston, which recently received the largest-ever
container ship to stop on the East Coast, is exploring ways to
attract even bigger vessels. (Post and Courier)
Royal Mail PLC reported stronger profits as its growing
logistics business offset fading parcel revenue. (MarketWatch)
Global Logistic Properties' fourth-quarter profit surged as
asset values rose. (Straits Times)
U.S. East Coast and Gulf Coast ports i ncreased their share of
Asian imports. (Journal of Commerce)
Qantas Freight won a contract with China Post to fly airmail
between China and the U.S. (Air Cargo News)
Air carriers are tacking on fuel surcharges, raising concerns
with forwarders. (The Loadstar)
Daimler opened an $18.7 million "proving ground" in Oregon to
test autonomous trucks, platoons and other technology. (Commercial
Carrier Journal)
KeepTruckin, a startup that helps truckers digitize driving logs
and other information, raised $18 million in a funding round.
(Reuters)
U.S. rail traffic rose 5.7% in the week ended May 13 compared
with a year earlier. (Progressive Railroading)
San Francisco is considering a ban on sidewalk delivery robots.
(SFGate)
ABOUT US
Brian Baskin is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Follow him at
@brianjbaskin, and follow the entire WSJ Logistics Report team:
@PaulPage, @jensmithWSJ and @EEPhillips_WSJ and follow the WSJ
Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.
Write to Brian Baskin at brian.baskin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 19, 2017 06:56 ET (10:56 GMT)
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