QAD Precision News Round-Up: 12 June 2020

In the QAD Precision News: 12 June 2020, Vietnam ratifies FTA with EU; UK and Japan begin trade talks; grim predictions from the OECD; UK retail sales improve in May; UPS announces healthcare-dedicated expansion; plus 8 critical questions life science shippers need to ask before choosing a parcel shipping solution and more. 

Global Trade

VIETNAM RATIFIES FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH EU

On Monday, Vietnam ratified a free trade deal with the EU that will eliminate 99 percent of tariffs on goods traded between the Southeast Asian country and the bloc. In addition, the deal should provide Vietnam with an economic boost as it recovers from the coronavirus pandemic. The European Union Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is expected to take effect in July. The EU has already signed a free trade agreement with Singapore, making this the bloc’s second deal with a member of the Association of Southeast Asian nations (ASEAN). For more information, please see Reuters. 

UK AND JAPAN BEGIN POST-BREXIT TRADE TALKS 

On Tuesday, Japan and the UK began negotiations to reach an agreement on a post-Brexit trade deal. The aim of the talks is to create a trade deal similar to the one that London and Tokyo have under the European Union. If the two countries fail to reach an agreement before January 1 2021, they will default to World Trade Organisation trading terms. In this outcome, tariffs and other obstacles to commerce would be in place between the UK and Japan. Additionally, Britain began trade talks with the US in May and is hoping to reach an agreement with the EU by the end of this year. For more details, please see BBC. 

OECD REPORTS BIGGEST PEACE-TIME DECLINE IN A CENTURY 

On Wednesday, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) forecasted that the global economy will contract 6 percent this year —  the biggest peace-time downturn in a century. Nonetheless, the OECD also predicts that there will be 5.2 percent growth in 2021 as the global economy emerges from a recession inflicted by coronavirus. However, the report states that a possible scenario of a second wave of the virus this year could cause the global economy to shrink 7.6 percent before recovering by 2.8 percent in 2021. For more details, please see Reuters.

Carriers

UPS ANNOUNCES HEALTHCARE-DEDICATED EXPANSION

On Wednesday, UPS announced a number of facility expansions to its healthcare warehouses and distribution network in important global markets. The carrier plans to create up to 1.5 million sq. ft of distribution space for coronavirus-related shipments, including expansions in Central and Eastern Europe, extra cold chain in Louisville in the US, plus a new facility in Shanghai. Furthermore, UPS is expanding its GDP facility in Hungary and GMP space in the UK. For more information, please see UPS Pressroom. 

DHL EXPRESS TO ADD 400 NEW JOBS IN US 

DHL Express has announced that it is adding approximately 400 new jobs in the US. The move comes as a result of shipment volumes seeing double digit growth compared to 2019. CEO for DHL Express US Greg Hewitt said that the coronavirus lockdown has caused volumes to increase due to online shopping growth. Additionally, Hewitt stated that urgent shipments, including masks, gloves and other PPE also contributed to a spike in volumes. For more information, please see American Journal of Transportation. 

Retail

UK RETAIL SALES IMPROVE IN MAY 

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has reported a large decline in UK retail sales in May, but less of a fall than in April. On Tuesday, industry data revealed that this is a result of lifting some Covid-19 restrictions and an increase in online shopping. In addition, the BRC revealed that total retail spending at its members —  mostly large chains —  was 5.9 percent lower than May 2019. However, this is an improvement compared to the record 19.1 percent drop last month when nearly all non-essential retailers were closed due to the coronavirus lockdown. For more information, please see Reuters. 

QAD Precision News 

8 CRITICAL QUESTIONS LIFE SCIENCE SHIPPERS NEED TO ASK BEFORE CHOOSING A PARCEL SHIPPING SOLUTION

The global Covid-19 pandemic has underlined just how important it is for life sciences companies to ship life saving products in a timely manner. Nonetheless, even before the global pandemic life sciences companies were dealing with the need to send more parcels to a larger number of destinations than ever before. Furthermore, changes in treatments also means that life science shippers have an increasing number of goods that need temperature-controlled or cold-chain storage in order to ensure the product’s efficacy. As a result of these challenges, life sciences companies have turned to technology to assist with their parcel shipping needs. In this QAD Precision Report we look at the challenges of life sciences shipping and eight important questions to ask before choosing a parcel shipping solution. Read the full report here. 

YOU PREPARED FOR DISRUPTION, NOW PREPARE FOR CHANGE

QAD Precision’s Jerry Peck argues that the Covid-19 crisis will result in lasting change to the business landscape, and that even manufacturers with the best-laid supply chain contingency plans were ill-prepared to handle the myriad issues that the pandemic disruption brought on. Read the full article here.