One of the UK’s leading fashion brands French Connection has signed a five-year inbound logistics contract with MIQ Logistics, worth around £6m.
MIQ executives said the deal shows the growing attraction of medium-sized 3PLs to retail shippers, in comparison to the largest multinational logistics operators, due to higher customer service levels.
American Trucking Associations
American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 2.7% in May, following a revised 1.7% drop during April. In May, the index equaled 139 (2000=100), up from 135.3 in April. The all-time high was 144 in February.
Although North American freight shipments continued to climb in May, they are still well below those of the last several years. Expenditures for freight fell for the third time in five months. The
current economic outlook is volatile, which has led to slow uneven growth. What is perceived as a strong sign one week often looks like a sign of economic weakness the next. Even the Federal
Reserve is having difficulty pinning down the direction and strength of the economy. At their June 15 meeting, they lowered their economic growth projection from 2.2 percent to 2.0 percent. The global economy is facing many unsettling influences, such as Britain’s possible exit from the EU, China’s economic woes and currency problems, and oil prices.
U.S. Department of Transportation
The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI), which is based on the amount of freight carried by the for-hire transportation industry, rose 1.3 percent in April from March, rising after two months of decline, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ (BTS). The April 2016 index level (121.1) was 27.9 percent above the April 2009 low during the most recent recession.
Keeping in line with its previous edition, the Port Tracker report issued today by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and maritime consultancy Hackett Associates pointed to slow growth in the summer months for United States-based retail container ports.
“The U.S. LEI picked up sharply in April, with all components except consumer expectations contributing to the rebound from an essentially flat first quarter,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Director of Business Cycles and Growth Research at The Conference Board. “Despite a slow start in 2016, labor market and financial indicators, and housing permits all point to a moderate growth trend continuing in 2016.”
The unemployment rate declined by 0.3 percentage point to 4.7 percent in May, and nonfarm payroll employment changed little (+38,000), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in health care. Mining continued to lose jobs, and employment in information decreased due to a strike.
On July 1, 2016, the new container weight verification rule will go into effect and will impact shippers from 171 countries due to the added requirements of necessary documentation. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted this new requirement under the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Chapter VI, Part A, Regulation 2.
MIQ Logistics is pleased to be recognized by Mahindra USA with two awards. The awards were given at the Mahindra Partners Award Banquet on May 24, 2016 in Houston, TX.
