Supply Chain Research

Maritime bill-of-lading data can provide a lower latency, higher granularity guide to supply chain activity than regular macroeconomic data, at the cost of being less complete. US seaborne imports of containerized freight slumped 20% lower year over year in February, signalling a continued slowdown in supply chain activity across a wide range of industries. The downturn was led by consumer discretionary products, which dropped by 29%, while consumer staples shipments also declined by 12%. Within consumer goods, the fastest downturn was among home furnishings importers, whose shipments fe...