Transportation TIP List: Week of August 28th, 2016

Transportation TIP List: Week of August 28th, 2016

Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer with picnics and barbecues galore, but there’s still plenty of work to be done year-round when it comes to improving transportation efficiency and safety. This week, our TIP List highlights the U.S. trucking market, cross-border trade, some key tech trends that are shaping global logistics and much more!

• 10 Things Shippers Need to Know About US Trucking Market: In mid-2016, trucking companies of all types are taking new and sometime rough routes, as the growth of e-commerce, shifting consumer spending patterns, new regulations and technology create additional challenges.

• Despite Calls for Collaboration, Truck Shippers Seen Sticking to the Same Old Script: Trucking executives have been preaching to shippers the virtues of a more collaborative relationship to help supply chains run more efficiently and to provide relief to their hard-pressed drivers.However, the pleas and warnings have mostly fallen on deaf ears.

• Cross-Border Trade is On a Roll: The warm give-and-take between the two leaders of the U.S. and Canada is emblematic of the relationship between the nations they represent. That relationship is especially true when it comes to cross-border trade.

• Phase 2 Rule Could Lead to Further Integration of Aluminum, Lightweight Alloys: Last week, the EPA and the NHTSA threw down the gauntlet for slashing heavy-truck emissions and boosting efficiency, citing aluminum components including wheels, extrusions and sheet as part of the light-weighting solution.

• 3 Tech Trends Shaping the Future of Global Logistics: While the global logistics business has never taken many cues from Silicon Valley, an array of new technologies is set to significantly alter – and likely disrupt – the $4 trillion sector over the next several years.

• Spot Market Update — Van, Reefer Transitional Period, and a Few Hot Markets: Every week trends seem mixed and that truckload freight volume and rates are in a transition, and it’s true. We’re between seasons, and the economy also seems stuck between growing and shrinking.

• Key House Republican to Unveil Sales Tax Plan for Purchases Across State Lines: A top House Republican will release a new proposal in coming days that attempts to resolve the long-running dispute among retailers, state governments and online retailers over how to tax purchases made across state lines.

What do you think were the more important industry topics of summer 2016?