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☆ The US-China tech race is moving from chips to the raw materials they're made of
▼ + stars: | 2024-11-14 | by ( Huileng Tan | Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

In the race against the US for global tech supremacy, China has the upper hand in at least one critical area: rare earths. AdvertisementFor more than a year, Beijing has slowly been tightening its grip on critical minerals and rare earths. Now, there are fears that China could tighten the global rare earths supply chain even more. China's rare earth dominanceChina has long dominated the rare earths market due to supply, low labor costs, and lax environmental standards. In 2022, the US Department of Defense awarded $45 million to MP Materials for rare earth oxide processing, and in 2023, it awarded over $288 million to Lynas USA to set up commercial-scale rare earth oxide production facilities.

Persons: Deng Xiaoping, —, Rick Waters, Donald Trump's, Louise Loo, Zongyuan Zoe Liu, Chris Tang, Nick Vyas, USC Marshall's Randall R, Vyas, he's Organizations: European Union, World Trade Organization, US Department of Defense, Materials, US, White, Nvidia, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, Oxford Economics, Greater China, Council, Foreign Relations, Soviet, Bloomberg, AMD, USC, Kendrick, Supply Chain Institute, Bureau of Industry, Security Locations: China, US, Beijing, Japan, USA, Eurasia, Washington, Taiwan, Greater, Soviet Union, North Korea, North Vietnam

☆ What the potential UPS strike could mean for your packages
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —A UPS strike by 185,000 workers 25 years ago brought the logistics giant’s operations to a standstill. Striking employees of UPS in Chicago in 1997, the last major UPS work stoppage. In a worst case scenario, a longer-term UPS strike could cause major disruptions to the US supply chain network. UPS and the Teamsters' union contract expires August 1. Small and medium-sized businesses lower in the pecking order than big-box chains would see the most delays from a lengthy strike, logistics experts say.

Persons: Jeff Haynes, ”, Cathy Roberson, Richard Drew, ” Roberson, Pitney Bowes, John Haber, “, Carol Tome, Sean O’Brien, ” O’Brien, Alan Amling Organizations: New, New York CNN, UPS, US Postal Service, FedEx, Teamsters, Getty, Logistics, Walmart, Target, ”, Transportation Insight Holding Company, CNN, University of Tennessee’s, Chain Institute, “ Locations: New York, United States, Chicago, AFP

CHICAGO, May 17 (Reuters) - The U.S. supply chain is healing from early pandemic shocks that sent shipping costs skyrocketing and squeezed supplies of everything from toilet paper to pasta, but more than three years later, material shortages and hiring woes linger. Speakers from Walmart (WMT.N), Colgate-Palmolive (CL.N), Toyota (7203.T) and other companies will discuss their supply-chain strategies at the Reuters Events supply chain conference in Chicago on Wednesday and Thursday, as inflation and interest rate hikes threaten to tip the economy into recession. "Freight costs, logistics, have gone down significantly," said Mario Guerendo, who oversees global supply chain for vehicle engine maker Cummins Inc (CMI.N). After spending whatever it took to keep store shelves stocked during the early days of the pandemic, supply chain executives now are wringing out costs to shelter profits from eroding demand, said Alan Amling, distinguished fellow at the University of Tennessee's Global Supply Chain Institute. "That's a really good thing for the supply chain."

Speakers from Walmart (WMT.N), Colgate-Palmolive (CL.N), Toyota (7203.T) and other companies will discuss their supply-chain strategies at the Reuters Events supply chain conference in Chicago on Wednesday and Thursday, as inflation and interest rate hikes threaten to tip the economy into recession. "We've still got certain sectors that are up and some that are down, which was a feature of the pandemic," Croke said. That's even true within sectors, Croke added, pointing to recent manufacturing data, which remained depressed even as segments like motor vehicles reported gains. After spending whatever it took to keep store shelves stocked during the early days of the pandemic, supply chain executives now are wringing out costs to shelter profits from eroding demand, said Alan Amling, distinguished fellow at the University of Tennessee's Global Supply Chain Institute. "That's a really good thing for the supply chain."

☆ Ongoing supply shortages threaten U.S. infrastructure and war efforts
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Lisa Baertlein | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"One of the big issues as we're trying to ramp up the military industrial base is having enough electronic components," Miller said. Companies that make war weapons like shoulder-fired Javelin and Stinger missiles are awaiting U.S. funding before starting new production for Ukraine. "Any general shortage in semiconductors will affect defense," said Brad Martin, director of Rand Corp's National Security Supply Chain Institute. On the other hand, ongoing demand for auto and farm equipment has kept stocks of microchips that act as electronic brains in that machinery tight. "As we've moved through the past year or so, we have seen gradual improvement in our supply chain, including semiconductors ... Short-term disruptions will continue to happen," GM spokesman Dan Flores told Reuters in an email.

The supply chain woes that sent costs soaring and spurred shortages of everything from toilet paper to passenger cars are easing for retail-focused industries, but remain stubbornly persistent in important growth sectors like autos, machinery, defense and non-residential construction, experts said. "One of the big issues as we're trying to ramp up the military industrial base is having enough electronic components," Miller said. Companies that make war weapons like shoulder-fired Javelin and Stinger missiles are awaiting U.S. funding before starting new production for Ukraine. "Any general shortage in semiconductors will affect defense," said Brad Martin, director of Rand Corp's National Security Supply Chain Institute. "As we've moved through the past year or so, we have seen gradual improvement in our supply chain, including semiconductors ... Short-term disruptions will continue to happen," GM spokesman Dan Flores told Reuters in an email.

☆ A New Year’s Resolution for Stemming Retail’s Returns Tsunami
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Alan Amling | Thomas Golds | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

So why haven’t retailers taken significant steps to improve the returns process and stop it from imploding their profitability? Photo illustration: Laura KammermannThe first step in solving the problem is to appoint an executive responsible for the end-to-end returns process. Researchers at the University of Tennessee have broken the returns process into five “pathways” to help returns executives better understand improvement opportunities. The best way to mitigate returns costs, of course, is to find ways to limit returns before they happen, in the pre-sale process. As goods move through the returns process, costs and waste increase dramatically.

☆ A battle over paid leave is threatening to grind the US economy to a halt
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

US rail workers are preparing to strike over their latest negotiations with management. Three years of rail workers' negotiations with management over this issue could soon culminate in an economy-disrupting strike, after the latest tentative agreement included just one paid personal day off a year. That's too far from the 15 days of paid sick leave that rail workers pushed for, and which railroads argue would cost them $688 million a year. While praise for essential workers has faded, rail workers still hold a lot of power in the economy. "The stockholders would go absolutely crazy if we were able to strike for one day."

☆ Rail workers are 'enraged' and feel 'mistreated,' says a union president. It could end in a holiday season strike that would send shockwaves through the US economy.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Hannah Towey | Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Rail workers might go on strike in December, potentially rattling the supply chain and the whole economy. BLET narrowly voted to ratify an agreement with management, but another major union voted to reject. Ultimately, if any union goes on strike, other rail unions likely will not cross the picket line. Rail workers voted in record numbers after feeling "alienated," "enraged," and "mistreated, all for the sake of profit"The Transportation Division of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART-TD), which has over 28,000 eligible voting members, narrowly voted down the proposal. If any union does strike, Pierce said, "no other union is going to cross that picket line in the railroad biz."

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