Point To Point

The newly-expanded Panama Canal was opened on June 26, 2016. Three years later, we addressed the impact that the Panama Canal expansion had made on supply chains to that point.

In the last week of December 2021, more than 100 container ships were anchored outside the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. While that wasn’t the all-time high up until that point, the sheer number shows just how backed up the international supply chain currently is as we begin the new year. With that said, 2021 was a year that shippers, especially those involved with imports, will never forget.

The United States and Canada share the longest international border (at 5,525 miles) and the strongest bilateral trade relationship (with nearly $2 billion exchanged every day) of any two countries in the world. In fact, the U.S. is by far the dominant point of origin for goods imported into Canada, with China a distant second. A key reason for that strong relationship is the relative ease of transporting goods from one country to another via truck, which is supported by more than 120 land ports-of-entry lining the border.

Mexico became the top trade partner of the U.S. for the very first time in 2019. Though the title went back to China for 2020, Mexico took the crown again throughout the majority of last year. Adding fuel to the fire that is growing trade throughout North America is the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) which went into effect in July 2020. The strength of trade between the three nations may become even stronger due to the challenges seen during the pandemic.

During the first year of the pandemic, online shopping surged as more consumers sought an alternative to crowded marketplaces. According to Digital Commerce 360 (DC360), e-commerce sales experienced an astounding 32.4% year-over-year growth in 2020. Last year, however, the widespread availability of vaccines and periods of lower COVID-19 cases led more shoppers back out into the brick-and-mortar environment.

In late 2021, we asked shippers to participate in our 7th annual State of the North American Supply Chain survey. The purpose of the survey is gauge the challenges that shippers faced over the course of 2021, and to gain a better understanding of what they believe will be their biggest challenges in 2022. 

The seventh annual State of the North American Supply Chain Survey was conducted in late 2021. The goal of the survey was to gauge the challenges that shippers faced in 2021 and to gain a better understanding of their outlook heading into the new year. More than 1,800 shippers across a wide range of industries shared their input and experiences.

As the 2021 holiday retail season kicks in, many shippers are facing a wide range of dilemmas. From manufacturing and port delays abroad to extended wait times for cargo ships to be unloaded in the U.S., supply chain disruptions are almost daily occurrences. So what is happening, and more importantly, what can shippers do about it?