Looking for a quick summary of the top supply chain and logistics news making waves this week? Read our weekly "Supply Chain Snapshots" for summaries and commentary to get you up-to-speed.

1. MSC and Maersk Agree to Terminate 2M Alliance in 2025

(Read on The Maritime Executive)

The two carriers that make up the 2M Alliance, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and Maersk, have come to an agreement to terminate the alliance at the end of its 10-year term in 2025. In a joint statement this week, the two carriers talked about how the shipping market has changed and each company is seeking a different strategy.

2. Trucking Demand Falls Faster Than Inventories in December

(Read on FreightWaves)

Consumer demand for new products is dropping faster than existing inventory levels, according to data from FreightWaves SONAR. This means that while trucking companies have been hoping for inventory levels to rightsize during H1’23, they may have to wait a bit longer for demand to pick up again.

3. Lunar New Year Usually Means Factory Slowdowns. The Pandemic Changed That.

(Read on Marketplace)

In the past, Lunar New Year (LNY) has been a time where production centers across East Asia are shut down as workers spend time with their families. Then COVID hit and disrupted manufacturing and consumer demand, often in opposing directions. While the retail industry works through remaining inventory issues and demand continues to fluctuate, the future impacts of LNY remain to be seen. (Article includes quotes from Flexport’s own Chief Economist, Phil Levy)

4. Airfreight Operators Skip the Line at America’s Crowded Airports

(Read on The Wall Street Journal)

Freight forwarders are increasingly shifting some of their cargo to fly into and out of smaller regional airports, rather than deal with delays caused by congestion, labor issues, and aging infrastructure at main hub locations. This move means that less cargo is flying in the bellies of passenger flights, and more is in chartered or owned cargo planes, further reducing delays and enabling forwarders to load and unload much faster, and often at locations closer to their clients factories and warehouses.

5. Port of New York Shatters Trade Record, But Latest Shipping Data Hints at California Comeback

(Read on CNBC)

For the first time in its history, the Port of New York moved more than 9 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) in 2022. The major East Coast port also overtook the Port of Los Angeles/Long Beach as the busiest in the U.S. due to looming threats of labor action impacting West Coast ports last year. What remains to be seen is how shifting consumer trends and the status of those labor talks will impact the numbers as we dive deeper into 2023.

We’ll be back next week for another edition of Supply Chain Snapshots.