QAD Precision News Round-Up: 22 February 2019

In the QAD Precision News Round-Up: 22 February 2019, strong UK January sales; US-China trade talks resume; Canada pushes US for tariff exemption; WTO warns of trade slowdown; DHL and SF form partnership in China; and the benefits of multi carrier shipping for global manufacturers.

Retail

UK RETAIL BUOYED BY STRONG JANUARY SALES

British shoppers flocked to the January sales this year giving retailers a much needed boost. Consumer sales increased by a monthly 1 percent after a poor December performance. This was a much larger increase than the 0.2 percent forecast by a Reuters poll of economists. Retail sales were 4.2 percent higher compared with January 2018, and clothing sales grew by the largest volume since September 2017. In addition, a survey from the British Retail Consortium showed that shops enjoyed the fastest sales growth in seven months. For more on this story, please click here.

Global Trade

POSITIVE US-CHINA TRADE TALKS

Talks between US and Chinese trade negotiators resumed this week. Official have until 1 March to hash out a deal. The US will raise tariffs from 10 to 25 percent on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods should the two sides be unable to reach an agreement. On Wednesday, Reuters reported that negotiators had begun to outline an agreement on structural issues. Officials also began drafting language for six memorandums of understanding on Chinese reforms. For more, please see Reuters.

CANADA PUSHES TO END STEEL AND ALUMINUM TARIFFS

This week, Canadian officials warned that US steel and aluminum tariffs could prevent their country from ratifying NAFTA 2.0 — the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Minister of Transport Marc Garneau claimed that ratification was “a challenge with the tariffs in place.” At an event hosted by the Canadian American Business Council, Canada's ambassador to the US, David MacNaughton, seconded this view. He stated that the US should “just get rid of the tariffs.” This comes after a meeting between Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Ms Freeland told reporters that she had made clear the importance of the US lifting tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. For more details, please click here and here.

WTO: GLOBAL TRADE SLOWING DOWN

This Tuesday, the World Trade Organization released its quarterly outlook indicator showing a slump in global trade. The indicator showed a reading of 96.3 — the lowest since March 2010. Readings below 100 indicate below-trend trade growth. The WTO’s reading measures quarterly merchandise trade volume, export orders, international air freight, container port throughput, car production and sales, electronic components and agricultural raw materials. In addition, the WTO warned that continuing trade tensions, alongside political and financial instability could lead to a widespread economic downturn. For more detail, please see Reuters.

Carriers

DP-DHL DEAL WITH SF HOLDINGS

Deutsche Post-DHL has sold its supply chain operations in China to SF Holding for €700m. Under the terms of the deal, the two companies will partner for 10 years. This partnership — called SF DHL Supply Chain China — will dissolve after that period. The deal covers DHL Supply Chain activities in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau. For more details, please see The Loadstar.

QAD Precision News

HOW MULTI CARRIER SHIPPING SOFTWARE BENEFITS GLOBAL MANUFACTURERS

When a global enterprise works across different sites, regions and countries, logistics is no easy task. To ensure on-time delivery and continued customer satisfaction, manufacturers need to track every carrier interaction. Customers will blame manufacturers for delays — especially if your customer’s customers are also left waiting for promised goods. Managing multiple carriers across different regions can become an overwhelming project. Regions such as Europe and Asia, for example, have dozens of carriers, each with their own set of rules and protocols. Plus, when your shipping data is spread across multiple carrier systems, having a true picture of carrier costs and performance becomes almost impossible to track. Although leveraging multiple carriers reduces costs, it is still a challenge to monitor and maintain all of these relationships. In the latest Precision Report we look at how multi carrier shipping software can help global manufacturers to standardize shipping procedures, control costs and meet customer expectations. To read the full report, please click here.

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