2024 Economic Forecast RedStone Resource December 19, 2023 Inside This EditionSupply Chain Pressures Index Surges in Early December The New York Federal Reserve’s Global Supply Chain Pressures Index has surged since August at a historically fast pace. It is important to note that on a historical basis, the current reading is still showing a “balanced”…
Biden Administration Efforts on Supply Chain Resiliency RedStone Resource December 1, 2023 Inside This EditionPresidential Election Years and Business Activity It is a popular belief that Presidential election years are bad for economic activity (and therefore freight activity). There have certainly been some specific years in which there was a significant impact on the market,…
Petroleum Prices Still Weak Despite Supply Concerns RedStone Resource November 15, 2023 Inside This EditionGlobal Supply Chain Pressures Index Hits All-Time Low The New York Fed’s GSCPI fell to -1.74 in October, down from -.7 in September. This was the lowest reading in the history of the index dating to 1997. Understanding the index is…
Petroleum Price Concerns Mount on Middle East Tensions RedStone Resource October 18, 2023 Inside This EditionGlobal Supply Chain Pressures “Normalizing”? The New York Federal Reserve’s Global Supply Chain Pressures index has inched up in the past several weeks. At this point in time, the index is showing a “normal” relationship and lower than normal global…
Low Mississippi River Water Levels Impact Barge Traffic RedStone Resource October 2, 2023 Inside This EditionMaritime Sector Tightening Capacity in October Estimates suggest that a significant enough volume of capacity could be impacted that it could have a ripple effect on more than 20% of the sailings that touch the US east and west coasts.…
Small Businesses Owners Say Unlikely to Build Inventories Over Next Six Months RedStone Resource September 15, 2023 Inside This EditionDiesel Prices Quietly Surge to Nearly Third Highest Period in History US diesel prices have moved back up to $4.54 a gallon on a national average basis. Aside from the panic period in the weeks following…
Will the Peak Season Show Up Late? RedStone Resource September 1, 2023 Inside This EditionInflation Still Too Hot, but the Trend is Positive The transportation sector and the broader economy are being affected heavily by higher interest rates currently (the highest in 23 years). Tightening credit conditions are also slowing down borrowing by consumers, affecting…
Investment and Spending Continue to Surprise with Strong Growth RedStone Resource August 18, 2023 Inside This EditionSupply Chain Stall and Latest on Inventory to Sales Ratios This sluggish supply chain cycle is being driven heavily by inventory overstocks and the latest data on inventory to sales ratios across the economy show that 65% of businesses…
What Happens in LTL Now with the Yellow Closure? RedStone Resource August 1, 2023 Inside This EditionCan the Economy Continue to Surprise Higher? The current Q3 GDPNow estimate from the Atlanta Fed is showing growth of 3.5%. This could easily adjust downward throughout the quarter as new economic data is released, and Blue Chip Economist…
Amazon Prime Shopping Day Hits Record – But is This a Good Thing? RedStone Resource July 17, 2023 Inside This EditionPeak Season Inbound Estimates The National Retail Federation and Hackett and Associates are predicting that inbound containers from July through November will be down 4.5% from last year’s volumes. The estimate by the NRF shows…