1. Cargo Thefts Spike 15% Across U.S. and Canada in 2022

(Read on FreightWaves)

According to recent data, cargo theft surged across the U.S. and Canada at the end of 2022, leading to an estimated $223 billion in damages. Counting a total of 1,778 voluntarily reported thefts; results show California, Texas, and Florida clocking in the highest density of reports. Organized crime rings play a large part in cargo theft, and have been branching out, both geographically and in terms of tactics—with a recent surge in identity theft and fictitious pickups being used.

2. Lunar New Year Factory Closures Curb Air Cargo Rates, Demand

(Read on Supply Chain Dive)

While there are still myriad factors at play on the global shipping scene, an earlier than usual Lunar New Year (LNY) this year put additional downward pressure on air freight rates and demand. “In 2023, we can expect a stronger emphasis on the spot market as shippers begin building new, closer working relationships with forwarders to ensure they are top priority,” says Flexport’s own VP and Global Head of Airfreight, Zeid Houssami.

3. Customer Enablement Offers Supply Chain Orgs a Pipeline to Increased Revenue

(Read on Supply Chain Management Review)

This article is a summary of a recent Gartner survey report that found supply chain organizations who focus on customer enablement rather than simply customer satisfaction are better positioned for growth in the current economic climate. They also note that it may behoove Supply Chain as a Service (SCaaS) organizations to switch to a “cost-to-serve” model in order to take advantage of linking revenue to a service choice rather than an individual function.

4. What Crappy Beer Demand Tells Us About the Economy

(Read on FreightWaves)

Beer shipments are down 19.4% compared to 2020 numbers. While this may seem to only bode ill for the country’s biggest breweries, it is actually being seen as a microcosm of the larger economic trends taking shape in 2023. While beer prices have soared, sales of single cans of “below premium” labels are still strong. This mirrors the slightly bizarre economic situation overall, where seemingly frivolous items are hitting all time low prices while many can’t afford staples like eggs and milk.

5. Biggest Shipping Companies Signal Global Trade Slowdown

(Read on The Wall Street Journal)

Wednesday brought an announcement from Danish shipper A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S that they expect their earnings this year to be significantly lower than 2022. Various forces are at work, with a major one being the shift back to service-based spending in both the U.S. and Europe. Others are seeing indications of supply chain pressure relaxing and a return to more standard spending patterns.