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Supply
Chain by the Numbers |
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- June 17, 2021
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US GDP to Soar in 2021 but Slow in Second Half, Women Make Gains in Supply Chain Roles; US Manufacturing Shows Solid Gains in May but Still Down from Pre-Virus; Bridge Closure in Memphis Causing Chaos |
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7.0% |
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| That is the upwardly revised forecast for US GDP growth in 2020, up from 6.5% estimated in March, according to the Federal Reserve Bank this week. If accurate, that would mean full year growth of more than 3% for the first time since 2005. However, one observer says that growth will come mostly in the first half of the year. "The economy has boomed over the past 12 months but is poised to slow in the second half of this year," said Joe LaVorgna, chief economist of the Americas for Natixis CIB. "Demand has been pulled forward and is expected to retrace its outsized gains. GDP growth is destined to slow sharply.” What’s more, the central bank now sees its favored inflation measure rising at an annual rate of 3.4% in 2021, well above its goal of 2%. |
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| That was the level of the US manufacturing index from the Federal Reserve Bank for May, according to the monthly report released this week. That was up nicely from the level of 97.4 in April. But is also means that US manufacturing output was still well below the level of about 105 seen in February 2020, before the start of the virus pandemic. It also means the index is still not even back to the level of output in the baseline year of 2012, when the index is set at 100. It is also well below the all-time high about 110 in 2007. |
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40,000 |
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That was the average level of vehicles (cars and trucks) that cross a bridge on Interstate 40 connecting Tennessee and Arkansas in normal times. But these are not normal times, as the bridge has been closed since May 11, after a contractor for the Arkansas Transportation Department found a large crack in a steel support beam that officials said put the bridge in jeopardy of failing. As a result, the only other option is to use a bridge on Interstate 55, a four-lane bridge span, to drive across the Mississippi in the area. And congestion is out of control. The Wall Street Journal reported that on a recent weekday the drive from West Memphis, Ark., to Memphis incredibly took more than three hours, a trip that usually takes about 10 minutes long. Shannon Samples Newton, president of the Arkansas Trucking Association, said the delays are costing the US trucking industry an estimated $2 million per day. It is unclear when the bring will re-open. |
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That is the share of women in the white collar supply chain workforce in the US, up from 39% in 2020. That according to what has become annual research from the analysts at Gartner. Every leadership level saw an increase in representation, except the executive level where there has been a slight decline. In 2021, women account for 15% of executive level roles, down from 17% in 2020. The survey was a partnership between Gartner and the AWESOME organization, which is focused on women in supply chain. However, 54% of survey respondents said that retaining midcareer women is an increasing challenge. Lack of career opportunities is the top reason that midcareer women left their previous position in supply chain. Previous years have shown that setting goals and having stated objectives are crucial drivers for improvements in increasing female representation in supply chain organizations. In 2021, the proportion of supply chain organizations with any type of goal jumped to 73% from 64% in 2020. 