Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 211,000 in April, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 4.4 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, health care and social assistance, financial activities, and mining.
We may soon learn whether the President has the legal authority to impose tariffs on imports without Congressional approval or whether the administration will bypass WTO rules and impose new barriers to imports. The first test may come as the result of an April 20th Presidential Memorandum directing Commerce to initiate an investigation under Section 232(b) of Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to determine the impact of steel imports on national security.
In early April, the only elementary school in Goodman, Missouri was destroyed by a tornado. Brian Duckworth, Logistics Manager at MIQ Washington D.C., found out about this disaster from his wife. She works for Frederick County Public Schools in Winchester, VA that is the part of the Bright Futures program, an organization that connects schools and communities across the USA, and Goodman Elementary school is part the program as well.
Source: Institute for Supply Management
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in April, and the overall economy grew for the 95th consecutive month, say the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM® Report On Business®.
The President was prepared to end the North American Free Trade Agreement deal, which had governed trade relations for the past 23 years, with a dramatic announcement April 29th at a Pennsylvania political rally marking his 100th day in office. But after speaking with the leaders from Canada and Mexico, the President announced he will not cancel the North American Free Trade Agreement and will instead work to renegotiate it with Mexico and Canada, reserving the right to cancel if the US does not obtain a favorable deal.
Throughout April 2017, there were many events that occurred within the global logistics industry. The April 2017 Logistics Link from MIQ Logistics gives insights into industry news, services provided by MIQ, updates with MIQ, and events that will be occurring in the near future.
“The March increase and upward trend in the U.S. LEI point to continued economic growth in 2017, with perhaps an acceleration later in the year if consumer spending and investment pick up,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Director of Business Cycles and Growth Research at The Conference Board. “The gains among the leading indicators were very widespread, with new orders in manufacturing and the interest rate spread more than offsetting declines in the labor market components in March.” – The Conference Board
Reports of severe port congestion at Shanghai’s Yangshan deepwater port have been coming in with more frequency over the last few days. Operations at MIQ Logistics in Shanghai have reported sailing schedule delays for a variety of reasons:
Source: Cass Information Systems
Both the Shipments and Expenditures Indexes have now been positive for three months in a row. Throughout the U.S. economy, there are a growing number of data points suggesting that the economy is getting better. Some data points are simply less bad, but an increasing number of them are better, and even a few are becoming outright strong. The 0.9% YoY increase in the March Cass Shipments Index is yet another data point which suggests that the first positive indication in October may have indeed been a change in trend. In fact, it now looks as if the October Cass Shipments Index, which broke a string of 20 months in negative territory, was one of the first indications that a recovery in freight had begun in earnest.
Source: American Trucking Associations
American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index slipped 1% in March, following a 0.1% decline during February. (February’s percentage decrease was unchanged from our press release on March 21, 2017.) In March, the index equaled 137.5 (2000=100), down from 138.8 in February. The all-time high was 142.7 in February 2016.
