Warehouse Wisdom, Weekly. 09/04/2026

INTRODUCTION / SEPTEMBER 04 2026

Happy Friday!

Apparently, no supply chain is safe these days, not even the one keeping the Guinness flowing. Thieves recently made off with $155,000 worth of Guinness, proving that inventory shrinkage can occasionally require a getaway vehicle. Meanwhile, retailers have a more digital concern heading into the holidays, as AI increasingly changes how consumers discover and shop for products. With AI assistants becoming part of the shopping journey, retailers may need to start marketing to algorithms as well as humans. Because apparently convincing actual people to buy things wasn't complicated enough.

In this week’s edition, we’re updating you on the week’s most important logistics news, including rising holiday shipping costs, sinking container reliability, tariffs and global supply chain challenges, AI-powered commerce, changing fulfillment strategies, and more. Let’s dive in!

GLOBAL LOGISTICS
Tariffs, drought & infrastructure keep supply chains guessing

China’s manufacturing machine keeps churning, but other countries are increasingly questioning how much is too much. The G20 is raising concerns about China’s reliance on exports, broadening what has largely been a U.S. concern into a global one. For SMBs sourcing overseas, more countries scrutinizing Chinese imports could mean further changes to tariffs, sourcing strategies, and ultimately landed costs. Apparently, "Where should we manufacture this?" is destined to remain one of supply chain’s favorite complicated questions.

Closer to home, the Canada-U.S. tariff fight is threatening to disrupt cross-border freight. Canadian retaliatory tariffs covering $27.6 billion of U.S. exports are set to take effect Sept. 8, and transportation groups are warning that falling freight volumes in one direction could leave trucks and equipment stranded on the wrong side of the border. For businesses shipping between the two countries, tariffs may therefore produce a double whammy: higher product costs and a less balanced transportation network.

Meanwhile, Mother Nature has apparently decided supply chains needed another variable. Historic drought conditions are disrupting European transportation, including freight movement along the Rhine, which normally carries roughly 70% of Europe’s inland waterway freight. When river levels become too low, vessels have to reduce their loads, and replacing just one barge can require 100 to 200 trucks. For companies with European suppliers or customers, low water levels can quickly turn into higher freight costs and longer lead times.

And the U.S. Department of Transportation has an unusual idea for squeezing more value out of infrastructure already sitting there: turn highways and rail corridors into arteries for electricity, fiber, water and other utilities. States and railroads could lease portions of existing rights-of-way to private operators, with revenue helping fund transportation infrastructure repairs. It’s basically asking our highways and railroads to pick up a second job.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PUBLISHER
A quick note

FREIGHT AND SHIPPING
Ocean reliability sinks as holiday shipping costs rise

If you import goods from Asia, you may want to build a little more breathing room into those delivery estimates. Global container schedule reliability dropped to 56.4% in July, its sharpest monthly decline since January 2021, while the average delay for late vessels climbed to 6.06 days. Severe weather and congestion across Asian ports are largely to blame, with Shanghai recording just 21% of vessels arriving on time. Not exactly numbers that inspire you to set your watch by an ocean carrier.

Unfortunately, slower doesn't necessarily mean cheaper. Trans-Pacific spot rates have climbed to new highs, supported by stronger-than-expected peak-season demand and Asian port congestion. Asia-to-U.S. West Coast rates rose to $7,621 per forty-foot container, while East Coast rates reached $9,791. Carriers are adding some September capacity, but upcoming blank sailings and possible Panama Canal low-water surcharges mean importers shouldn't start celebrating just yet.

And parcel shippers won't escape the holiday fun. USPS is proposing temporary peak-season price increases from Oct. 4 through Jan. 17, affecting Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, Ground Advantage and Parcel Select. Depending on weight and distance, retail increases could range from 50 cents all the way to $20.80. If holiday shipping is a meaningful part of your business, now would be an excellent time to make sure those extra costs are included in your forecasts.

Amazon Shipping is also preparing holiday delivery surcharges, with its most expensive peak period running from late November through Dec. 26. Between USPS and Amazon adding seasonal fees while ocean rates remain elevated, the holiday shipping season is shaping up to deliver plenty of packages and, unfortunately, plenty of surcharges.

WAREHOUSE QUICK DELIVERIES
ShipStation adds LTL, Canada Post loses $277M, and more…

THE FULFILLMENT ADVISOR NEWS
WarehousingAndFulfillment.com is now TheFulfillmentAdvisor.com

For more than 20 years, WarehousingAndFulfillment.com has helped brands find their ideal third-party logistics (3PL) partners through unbiased, data-driven matchmaking.

Today, we’re proud to introduce our next chapter: TheFulfillmentAdvisor

After two decades in the industry. we felt it was time for a creative refresh that better reflects our expanded capabilities. In addition to continuing our unbiased 3PL matchmaking services, we are now licensed to provide:

LOGISTICS VITALS
Manufacturing growth hits the brakes

U.S. manufacturing continued expanding in August, but growth slowed and warning signs are starting to appear. The Institute for Supply Management’s latest manufacturing report shows demand, employment and backlogs losing some momentum while prices remain elevated and supplier deliveries slow.

SUPPLY CHAIN
AI agents & local fulfillment reshape online shopping

Google may still rule referral traffic, but AI is starting to send a meaningful stream of shoppers toward e-commerce sites. AI-generated referral traffic to online retailers continues to grow, creating another potential customer-acquisition channel for merchants. For SMBs, the takeaway is worth watching: product information increasingly needs to make sense not only to shoppers and search engines, but to the AI tools helping shoppers decide what to buy.

And those AI tools increasingly want to do more than recommend products. Anthropic is rolling out Claude features focused on agentic commerce, with companies including Shopify, Visa and Mastercard involved in early implementations. The broader direction is clear: AI assistants are moving from answering shopping questions toward helping complete shopping tasks. Retailers spent years optimizing checkout for humans, so naturally we're now introducing an entirely new customer that isn't technically human.

Meanwhile, Temu's logistics strategy is changing as governments tighten rules around low-value imports. Parent company PDD Holdings is investing more heavily in local fulfillment as de minimis changes make the direct-from-China model less attractive. For SMB sellers, that's worth watching because marketplaces built around ultra-low-cost cross-border shipping may increasingly need domestic inventory and fulfillment networks to maintain delivery speeds and competitive pricing.

A QUICK WORD FROM US
Stop Playing Warehouse Matchmaker Roulette

We match businesses with thoroughly vetted 3PL warehouse and fulfillment companies - with try no fee for the outsourcer (unlike others that promise but charge under the table commissions). We are truly unbiased.

SUPPLY CHAIN
Packaging priorities shift as warehouses hit the road

What do e-commerce customers actually want from packaging? Apparently, practicality is winning. Ryder's latest consumer research shows shoppers' packaging priorities are shifting, with consumers placing greater emphasis on packaging that protects products, is appropriately sized and is easier to recycle. For SMBs, packaging isn't just a box anymore. It's part shipping expense, part customer experience, part sustainability strategy, and occasionally part puzzle when someone ships a thumb drive in a box large enough for a microwave.

Warehouses themselves may also become a little less stationary. The “warehouse on wheels” concept explores how retailers and logistics providers can position inventory closer to demand and use transportation assets more dynamically to support faster fulfillment. As same-day expectations rise, the traditional model of inventory sitting patiently in a distant warehouse becomes harder to defend. The closer inventory gets to customers, the faster delivery becomes, although the logistics puzzle gets considerably more interesting.