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Supply
Chain by the Numbers |
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- July 1, 2021
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US Goverment Debt at Near Record Levels; Iron Man Suit for Warehouse Workers; US Port Volumes at all Time Highs; US Mask Manufacturers Devastated by Chinese Imports |
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113% |
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| That is an estimate of US government debt relative to GDP in 2031, which if accurate would take the measure back to levels not seen since World War II. That according to a report this week from the Committee for a Responsible Budget, according to an article in USAToday. The low for the measure since the world war was just 23% in 1974. Right now, before the proposed new infrastructure plan, US debt is about 107%. Compare that to 67% in China, an incredible 266% in Japan, 70% in Italy, 100% in the UK, and 118% in Canada. So while the US has some company at elevate debt levels, it doesn’t mean all is OK. Such levels of debt versus GDP could risk inflation – especially if the government “prints money” to deal with the problem, and higher interest rates, as the government must pay more to attract an ever-larger number of various investors to buy its debt (bonds). |
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| That was the May increase in container volumes at the port of Los Angeles, with the measure soaring versus a pandemic-weakened month in 2020. LA handled 1,012,047 20-foot equivalent units in the month, compared with 581,664 TEUs a year ago. It was the first time a Western Hemisphere port has handled more than 1 million TEUs in a month, and was the 10th consecutive month of container volume increases at the port. The growth was driven by an increase in number of ships calling on the port, with the recent average 15 container ships a day, compared with 10 ships pre-pandemic. Next door, the port of Long Beach also had a record-setting month, moving 907,216 TEUs compared with 628,205 the year before, up 44% increase, and representing the highest volume in the 110-year history of the port. The story was largely the same at other US ports, from Oakland to Savannah. |
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90% |
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That is by how much sales of face masks to protect against the Coronavirus have fallen at US manufacturer of personal protective equipment Premium-PPE, located in Virginia Beach. The workforce is down to 50 from 280 in 2020. Is the dramatic fall a result of collapsing demand? No, not yet at least. The culprit is a flood of supply from China, which Premium-PPE and other US companies say are selling masks at below cost. In fact, Chinese made masks are now going for just 1 cent each – versus 10 cents of so for domestic masks, a 10 fold higher price. A new group called the American Mask Manufacturer's Association, which includes small and midsize companies, recently sent a letter to President Joe Biden asking for the government to buy up excess inventory at US producers, saying it’s a matter of national security for the US to maintain domestic mask production capacity. “Now that the worst of the crisis appears to be over in the US and supplies are no longer as tight, the push to become more self-sufficient regarding medical products has lost much of its momentum from a year ago,” notes the Asia.nikkei.com web site. |
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That is the claimed reduction in body stress from lifting things – such as cartons in a warehouse - from workers that wear “exosuits” from a company called Verve Motion. Yes, it’s Tony Stark and Iron Man coming to a distribution center near year, or something like that. The new age equipment, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal this week, comes laced with sensors and algorithms that detect how workers move and help them lift and load select cartons. Ahold Delhaize’s ADUSA supply chain network, which supports US grocery brands including Food Lion and Stop & Shop, has been testing the exosuits since last year. It plans to add as many as 250 more over the next few months. The goal: reduce injuries in the DCs, but maybe just as important improve worker retention and recruitment through making the job easier – and increasingly important consideration in these times of significant labor shortages.