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Supply
Chain by the Numbers |
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- Jan. 18, 2023
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US Manufacturing Falls in December; More Dangerous Demographics for the US; Inflation Still High but Slowing; Shipper Gettting Big Pay Day from Suit against Major Ocean Carrier |
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6.2% |
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That was the year over year rise in the US producer price index for December, according to the Labor Department this week. The PPI tracks price inflation at the wholesale level. 6.2% is too high, but the PPI was down from a rise of 7.3% in November versus 2021, seeming to indicate the pace of inflation is slowing. The slower pace of increase marks the ninth straight time that the 12-month reading has fallen from its peak of 11.7% in March. It’s also the slowest annual increase since March 2021. Producer prices fell 0.5% compared to November, the biggest one-month drop since April 2020, when lockdowns in the early days of the pandemic crashed demand for goods. It’s also the first monthly decline since last August. |
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| That is the level of the US manufacturing output index for December, as announced as always late last week by the Federal Reserve Bank. That was down rather sharply from the 101.1 level seen in November, meaning production was down about 1.3%, renewing concerns about a US economic slowdown. At the 99.8 level, it also means US manufacturing output is now below what is was in the average month in 2017 (index = 100) now more than five years later. Is also well below the all-time high of around 108 seen in late 2007. |
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$944,655 |
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That is how much a US federal judge ordered ocean container carrier MSC to pay furniture maker MCS Industries, following the carrier’s failure to present documents in the discovery phase of the case brought to the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) in July 2021. The judge ordered the carrier to pay reparations of $944,655, plus interest, to MCS. The judge made it clear that the ruling was not judged on the merit of MCS Industries’ case, but rather by default, because of MSC’s failure to supply the documents requested. Geneva-based MSC had sought to supply these documents, but was obliged to get clearance to do so from a Swiss court. Its application had been refused. Originally, the case brought by MCS Industries detailed an alleged failure by both Cosco and MSC to meet contractual obligations, claiming the carriers acted in unison to create conditions that would force the furnishings supplier to book cargo on the vastly more expensive spot market, rather than meet capacity requirements agreed to in contracts. In addition, MCS cited the carriers' blanked sailings, which had the effect of squeezing capacity and raising rates. |
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That is the average number of children per woman in the US in 2015-19, according to data released last week by the National Center for Health Statistics. That is well below the rate of 2.1% or so needed to keep the population at least stable, as the measure continues to drop. The age at which women have kids in the US also continues to rise. These changing demographics have all kinds of economic, cultural, and supply chain implications. For example, research has shown that a country’s economic growth rate is highly dependent on the rate of population growth. Fewer children being born will exacerbate issues around Social Security and other support services for an aging population, as fewer workers are there to support a growing number of retirees. Demand changes for a variety of goods and services. "We need to have a long-term stable workforce to sustain our economy," said Dr. John Rowe, a professor at Columbia University specializing in aging health policy and management
