Logistics

The threat of a nationwide strike by railroad workers that could have shut down the nation’s freight trains exposed vulnerabilities in the supply chain that could have proved devastating to the economy.

A logjam of more than 100 ships, tugboats and their convoys of barges in the shrinking Mississippi River is threatening to grind trade of grains, fertilizer, metals and petroleum to a halt.

No need any longer to wonder about pent-up demand for Class 8 trucks, North American Class 8 orders in September surged past 53,000 to set an all-time high and nearly doubled those of a year earlier, ACT Research reported.

Amazon.com Inc. plans to hire 150,000 seasonal workers, about the same as last year despite slowing sales and predictions of a lackluster holiday shopping season.

Hours before Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that emergency road and bridge repairs to Pine Island had been completed ahead of schedule on Oct. 5, cheers and a little laughter greeted some of the first motorists — including a Publix truck — to cross a temporary bridge built to restore access by land to the island, which took much of the brunt from Hurricane Ian.

Legislation designed to expedite emergency recovery aid recently advanced to the president’s desk amid renewed calls for enhancing infrastructure resilience.

A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S, one of the world’s largest oil consumers, ordered six large containerships that can sail on green methanol as part of the transport giant’s plan to become carbon neutral.

GXO Logistics Inc. has received unconditional regulatory clearance in the United Kingdom to acquire Clipper Logistics, the contract logistics provider announced Oct. 4.

CHICAGO — Since as early as 1848, some 12 years before the Civil War, Chicago has been a major center for transportation given its central location in the country, access to newly built railroad lines and the five Great Lakes. Now, more than 170 years later, millions of products pass through its massive transportation network for trucks, rail and air each day.

Supply chain activity in the U.S. picked up for the first time since March, buoyed by elevated inventories even as transportation costs slid for a sixth straight month.