Supply Chain by the Numbers for Sept. 15, 2022


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Supply Chain by the Numbers

- Sept. 15, 2022

Supply Chain by the Numbers for Sept. 15, 2022

Retailers Keep Investing in Technology Despite Slow Down; Update! Who will Move the Grain if Rail Workers Strike; Food Prices are Soaring; Amazon to Boost Contract DSP Driver Pay


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37%
That was by how much retailer BestBuy increased its capital investment in the first half of 2022, despite profits in the period down by about half. And that’s a theme seen across the US retail landscape, according to an article this week on CNBC.com. Retailers are seeing much lower earnings and falling share prices, but investment, especially in technology, continues on. With the S&P Retail Index down nearly 30% this year, most of the industry is increasing investment in capital spending by double digits. “There is definitely concern and awareness about costs, but there is a prioritization happening,” said Thomas O’Connor, vice president of supply chain consumer retail research at Gartner. CNBC says some retailers, such as Home Depot, are improving how supply chains work between the stores and their suppliers. Others, such as Walmart, are driving to improve in-store operations so that shelves are restocked more quickly and fewer sales are lost due to out-of-stocks.


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18,000

Update! Rail workers and carriers have reach a tentative agreement.

That’s how many car loads of grains alone that US railroads moved over the past week, according to the weekly report of Association of American Railroads, as farmcto market. That number is meant to show the impact to many companies and US consumers if rail workers do indeed go on strike as many expect on Friday. After getting buy-in from most of the 12 unions bargaining with the rail carriers’ front group, the National Carriers’ Conference Committee, including a 24% hike in wages, some of it retroactive to recent years, talks have turned to so-called lifestyle issues. That includes rail workers saying they can’t get sick time, and sometimes are called to come back to work after just completing a shift. Congress and/or the president have some tools to force workers back and/or mandate mediation, but how long will it take in event of a strike for the government to pull the trigger?



13.5%
That is by how much the cost of groceries in the US rose in August versus 2021, according to data released Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is the largest annual increase since May 1979, and much higher than the overall 8.3% rise in the Consumer Price Index. Grocery shoppers will notice most food items are far more expensive than they were a year ago. For example, egg prices have soared 39.8%, while flour got 23.3% more expensive. Milk prices have increased 17%, while the price of bread has jumped 16.2%. Some pundits point to so-called core inflation, which excludes so-called “volatile” food and energy cost and which rose a somewhat lower 6% than the main CPI - as if consumers don’t spend most of their money after house and car payments on food and energy.



$450 Million
That’s how many car loads of grains alone US railroads moved over the past week, according to the weekly report of Association of American Railroads, as farmers seek to get their harvest to market. That number is meant to show the impact to many companies and US consumers if rail workers do indeed go on strike as many expect on Friday. After getting buy-in from most of the 12 unions bargaining with the rail carriers’ front group, the National Carriers’ Conference Committee, including a 24% hike in wages, some of it retroactive to recent years, talks have turned to so-called lifestyle issues. That includes rail workers saying they can’t get sick time, and sometimes are called to come back to work after just completing a shift. Congress and/or the president have some tools to force workers back and/or mandate mediation, but how long will it take in event of a strike for the government to pull the trigger?

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