Without advance notice, Walmart recently announced plans to close 63 Sam's Club stores across the United States. An estimated 11,000 workers are expected to be impacted by the closings, although Sam's Club representatives have not yet confirmed the number of employees to be affected.

An EDGE 2017 Video Now Available on CSCMPtv

The supply chain is changing, and logistics professionals should be poised to change with it. No matter your sector, CSCMP's 28th Annual State of Logisticsreport, presented by Penske Logistics, has valuable insights you can use while drafting both short-term budgets and long-term strategies.

A.T. Kearney, the author of the 28th Annual "State of Logistics Report®", and industry leaders presented the report highlights and trends emerging from this year's report live annually at CSCMP's annual conference EDGE. Watch this year's live presentation on CSCMPtv.

The CSCMP Annual State of Logistics Report has tracked and measured all costs associated with moving freight through the U.S. supply chain since 1988. This year's report presented an overview of the economy during the past year, the logistics industry's key trends, and the total U.S. logistics costs for 2016.

The "State of Logistics Report®" is widely used by supply chain management and logistics professionals and organizations as the premier benchmark for US logistics activity.

Updates of CSCMP's Annual State of Logistics report are presented throughout the year at local CSCMP Roundtable Events. Check our calendar of events to find one near you.

Watch this year's live presentation on CSCMPtv.

Media Opportunities on CSCMPtv
Engage your market with video marketing solutions from CSCMPtv! We are proud to offer full-service video content marketing and banner sponsorship solutions.

• Leverage your existing educational videos.
• Create and distribute new video content to engage your target market, from creating the concept, to filming, editing, and online distribution.
• Use our professional video creation partner (additional fees will apply) or provide your own.
• High visibility and prime location during video plays.
• Banner sponsorship and placement available for any of the CSCMP Channels, except Provider Solutions
• Videos keep the audience on the site longer, making your banner more visible with click-thru rates up to 20x higher than regular web advertising

Contact Nichole Mumford at mailto:nmumford@cscmp.org for more information.

63rd Annual Food Shippers of America Conference Sponsors for 2018 include:

Oft-described as alternative currency, Bitcoin is more accurately defined as a database used across many nodes and cryptographically guarded from fraud for tracking. The emerging technology is poised to make a tangible impact on the shipping industry. Currently, the world's largest shipping company, Maersk, is exploring Bitcoin for use in managing its cargo shipments using elements of Bitcoin.

According to the US Energy Department's Short Term Energy Outlook, average diesel prices are expected to continue to increase during the next two years. The group expects the same trend to occur for regular grade gasoline. However, the outlook predicts fewer price fluctuations during that timeframe, which could lead to more long-term predictability for fuel-cost planning.

The 2018 John J Murphy Scholarship had new record of 21 participants. The winner and next top award recipients will be announced after January 30, and the top recipient will be invited to attend the conference and receive their award in person. A total of $22,500 will be distributed.

Transportation of goods is often the most time-consuming link in the supply chain, so it's clear that finding adequate strategies for managing transportation is crucial for long-term viability. So, many supply chain organizations are turning to more robust transportation management systems (TMS) to monitor shipments, identify bottlenecks and improve efficiencies. As a result of a successful TMS implementation, users are seeing savings in fuel, delivery time and productivity costs.

Recent USA TODAY reports citing patterns of systematic exploitation of workers have resulted in three lawsuits, filed on behalf of the city of Los Angeles against some of the largest port trucking companies in the United States.

Led by a combination of lower shipping costs and cheaper food, US wholesale prices saw a decrease in December of 0.1 percent, compared to the previous month. However, wholesale prices — the cost of goods before they reach the consumer — increased 2.6 percent in December 2017 when measured against December 2016, according to the US Labor Department.

According to a representatives from foodservice and food retailer associations, Congress' passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will help further drive growth in these industries. According to Cicely Simpson, National Restaurant Association executive vice president for public affairs, "This bill addresses the needs of small business and will help restaurants remain strong economic engines and job creators."

For the 14th consecutive year, Logistics Management offers its look into the industry's current state, as well as looking ahead to explore what shippers can expect with regards to freight rates and capacity in the coming year. And according to Managing Editor Patrick Burnson, "The steadily expanding global and domestic economies will be pushing rates up across every mode, while capacity will become even more constrained."