US retailers project strong import growth at least through April

With imports continuing to exceed expectations and showing no signs of slowing, US retailers are now predicting year-over-year monthly growth in imports will continue at least through April. Forces driving that growth include relatively low inventory-to-sales ratios, and the need to rapidly replace inventories due to relentless consumer demand for merchandise purchased online and delivered the next day. 

Read more at JOC

The Supply Chain’s Responsibility in Sustainability

Experts throughout the supply chain stress how the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has fast-tracked numerous emerging trends, one of the most important being sustainability. 

Read more at Supply & Demand Chain Executive

CBP seizes 100,000 fake surgical masks near US-Mexico border

Federal authorities seized 100,080 counterfeit N95 surgical masks Monday in El Paso, Texas.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) initially detained the shipment of 3M N95 surgical masks with a value of $600,480 on Dec. 3, according to a release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations. 

Read more at Freightwaves

How supply chain sustainability efforts withstood 2020

This year was a test for supply chains. Would efforts to build agility hold up against disruptions of supply and volatile demand? Could supply chains rework physical processes to keep workers safe and operations moving? Could they keep pre-planned projects on the rails amid the chaos?

Read more at Supply Chain Dive

Virus Update: Walmart Preps Freezers for Vaccine; U.S. Airline Workers Seek Frontline Priority

Walmart Inc. says it’s preparing its more than 5,000 pharmacies across the U.S. to receive COVID-19 vaccine doses, Bloomberg reported, including adding freezers and dry ice to handle any cold-storage demands.

Read more at Supply Chain Brain