Below is the latest edition of Modern Retail’s Supply Chain Weekly newsletter, which goes out on Mondays at 10 a.m. ET, and dives into all things logistics and supply chain during a tumultuous time for the retail industry. To receive this weekly in your inbox, click here.If last holiday season was about how retailers balanced new tariffs and their margins, this year has the added uncertainties of rising transportation costs.
Typically, summer is peak season for imports as companies look to get their inventory ready for the holiday shopping season. Some of that has been pulled even further forward as brands looked to get ahead of the latest round of tariffs that kicked in at the end of July.
But bringing in more goods right now means contending with soaring freight rates. DAT Freight and Analytics, which tracks transportation costs on a weekly basis, reports that late July fuel costs are up about 31% year over year. Van rates are up about 29%, and rates for flatbeds are up 34.7%, the analysis shows.
The higher transportation costs are caused in part by fuel cost increases related to the ongoing war in the Middle East, as well as ongoing trucking capacity shortages. Steve Blough, chief supply chain strategist at supply chain company Infios, said there’s also a capacity issue with how much trucking is available to move goods around. Some of the capacity issue is caused by an ongoing driver shortage in the trucking industry, which could face additional pressure after the Trump administration implemented stricter English language requirements for drivers back in April.
