QAD Precision News Round-Up: 11 February 2022

In the QAD Precision News Round-Up: 11 February 2022, US inflation is at 40 year high; Japan’s inflation slows; UK economy grew 7.5 percent in 2021; DHL buys sustainable aviation fuel; plus increase logistics ROI with multi carrier shipping software and more. 

Global Trade

US INFLATION AT 40 YEAR HIGH

In January, US inflation was 7.5 percent, the highest figure reported in 40 years, as strong consumer demand and pandemic-related supply restrictions increased prices. On Thursday, the Labor Department said the consumer-price index last month was at its highest level since February 1982, when compared with January a year ago. In addition, last month's level was higher than December’s 7 percent annual rate.  

Last month, the core price index, which excludes the volatile categories of food and energy, rose 6 percent from a year previous. Consequently, this result was a sharper rise than December’s 5.5 percent increase, and the highest rate in almost 40 years. 

In addition, used-car prices continued to drive overall inflation, rising 40.5 percent in January from a year ago. Furthermore, rising housing rental prices contributed to last month’s increase. Food prices surged 7 percent, the greatest increase since 1981. For more details, please see the Wall Street Journal. 

UK ECONOMY GREW 7.5 PERCENT IN 2021

In 2021, the British economy expanded 7.5 percent according to official figures revealed on Friday. This is a rebound from the 9.4 percent contraction the previous year. The Office for National Statistics said in the final quarter of the year, UK GDP is estimated to have risen by 1 percent. 

However, last week, the Bank of England reduced its GDP growth forecasts, cautioning that the impact of inflation means the economy is likely to grow 3.75 percent in 2022 instead of the 5 percent it previously estimated.

Furthermore, the Bank of England expects inflation to peak at 7.2 percent in April and has introduced back-to-back interest rate hikes for the first time since 2004. This takes the main Bank Rate from 0.1 percent to 0.5 percent and with additional tightening predicted. For more details, please click here. 

JAPAN’S CONSUMER INFLATION SLOWS

According to a Reuters poll, Japan's core consumer inflation likely slowed last month from December. This result strengthens expectations that the country's central bank will be slower to raise interest rates compared to other economies. Additionally, other data is expected to show Japan experienced a trade deficit of 1,607 billion yen ($13.91 billion) in January. As a result, this would be the greatest shortfall since January 2014. Imports likely grew 37.1 percent in January on rising raw material and fuel costs. In addition, there was a 16.5 percent gain in exports. For more details, please see Reuters. 

Carriers 

DHL BUYS 33 MILLION LITERS OF SUSTAINABLE AVIATION FUEL 

DHL Global Forwarding is set to purchase 33 million liters of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from Air France KLM Martinair Cargo. In consequence, this is one of the most significant purchases of SAF in the freight forwarding industry. The company has pledged to cover at least 30 percent of air freight and ocean freight fuel requirements with sustainable fuels by 2030.

The agreement is part of Deutsche Post DHL Group’s Sustainability Roadmap, which intends to spend €7 billion on green technologies by 2030. Furthermore, the initiative will assist in the company's objective to reduce all logistics-related emissions to zero by 2050. For more information, please see The Loadstar.  

QAD Precision News

INCREASE LOGISTICS ROI WITH MULTI CARRIER SHIPPING SOFTWARE

Since the pandemic, both parcel volumes and freight costs have skyrocketed. As a result of these twin pressures, controlling costs is crucial for high volume shippers. 

The ability to maximize logistics ROI is critical for getting the most customer satisfaction with the lowest freight costs. The best way to ensure you optimize service levels and reduce costs is with multi carrier shipping software. Here we look at the reasons why multi carrier shipping software is so critical to the success of high volume shippers. Read the full report here. 

IS IT TIME TO MOVE YOUR SUPPLY CHAIN APPLICATIONS TO THE CLOUD?

In this Supply & Demand Chain Executive article, QAD Precision's President Corey Rhodes discusses three critical questions today’s chief supply chain officer (CSCO) and other supply chain leaders can ask to help future-proof their global trade management. Read the article here. 

LIVE WEBINAR: WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU’RE EXPECTING… DISRUPTIONS! 

Please join us on February 17 at 10am EST (3pm GMT/4pm CET) for a 30 minute webinar where Corey Rhodes, President of QAD Precision, will discuss the impacts of disruptions and how agile enterprises can navigate these challenges. Topics covered include:

• Supply chain disruptions

• The growth of e-commerce and direct-to-consumer shopping

• Carrier capacity constraints

• Just-in-time vs just-in-case inventory management

Register here!