Supply Chain Intelligence Brief

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The  Supply Chain Intelligence Brief Will Return On Friday, January 2, 2026

TRUCKING

LTL Rebound to Kick Off in 2026, but Uncertainty Remains

Transport Topics Keiron Greenhalgh December 29, 2025

“How many times can people say six months from now? At some point, you’ve cried wolf too many times, right?” said Estes Express Lines President and Chief Operating Officer Webb Estes, noting it was tricky to know what to believe.

“I probably lean on the side that I think ’26 is going to be better than ’25. I think we have entered a bottom. Not to say there can never be a lower bottom, but it does feel to me like we’ve entered a bottom,” Estes said.

Midwest LTL carrier shutting down after 91 years

Freight Waves Todd Maiden December 29, 2025

Standard Forwarding Freight, the less-than-truckload carrier previously known as Standard Forwarding, is ceasing operations less than a year after DHL Freight sold it.

SHIPPERS / 3PLs

Caterpillar’s Surging Stock Is Fueled by AI, Not Yellow Excavators

The Wall Street Journal Bob Tita December 30, 2025 $Subscription Based

Sales of generators are powering the manufacturing giant’s fastest-growing segment and a race to help data centers skip the grid.

INDUSTRY

​As consumers increasingly embrace buying big and bulky goods online, last-mile providers reap the rewards

DC Velocity Gary Frantz December 29, 2025

Eddie Sorg, chief commercial officer for ArcBest, which provides final-mile services including inside delivery, stair carry, and light assembly, distills the final-mile “ask” down to three primary value levers: “Consumers and retailers want reliability, transparency, and flexibility, and we’re investing in exactly that,” he notes.

Domestic intermodal to benefit from new lanes, faster service in 2026

Journal of Commerce Ari Ashe December 29, 2025 $Subscription Based

The defining storyline of 2026 for North American intermodal rail will be how federal regulators respond to the proposed merger of Union Pacific Railroad (UP) and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS). The deal has already pushed competing railroads to launch new intermodal lanes and accelerate transit times, ripple effects that could set the stage for measurable volume gains, even without a spike in demand.

US rail shipments down 7% in last full week

Freight Waves Stuart Chirls December 29, 2025

Rail traffic on U.S. railroads totaled 487,138 carloads and intermodal units in the last full week of 2025, down 7% compared with the same period a year ago.

Amazon backs Flowers Foods at SCOTUS on delivery driver legal status

Freight Waves John Kingston December 30, 2025

Online retailer says workers are not part of an interstate commerce supply chain and should arbitrate their grievances, not have them heard in court.

A Look at the Experts Who Race to Decode Trump’s Tariffs

Transport Topics/Associated Press Matt Sedensky December 29, 2025

After a half-century immersed in the world of trade, customs broker Amy Magnus thought she’d seen it all, navigating mountains of regulations and all sorts of logistical hurdles to import everything from lumber and bananas to circus animals and Egyptian mummies.

Then came 2025.

SUSTAINABILITY / SAFETY / SECURITY

Windrose shares US zero-emissions trucking roadmap, eyes charging collaborations

Clean Trucking Jay Traugott December 29, 2025

Windrose has released an updated U.S. zero-emissions trucking map showing Class 8 battery-electric truck routes across Arizona, California, Nevada, and Texas, focused on major interstate corridors.

DHL Supply Chain Eyes Fleet of Tesla Semis

Transport Topics Keiron Greenhalgh December 29, 2025

DHL Supply Chain expects to add multiple Tesla Semi tractors to its U.S. Class 8 fleet in the coming 12 months as part of long-term, companywide plans to decarbonize the logistics giant’s fleet.

The elephant in the room for EV adoption: electricity prices

CCJ Jeff Seger December 26, 2025

However, the cost of electricity is concerning, and somewhat of a mystery. Before elaborating, I need to offer a caution: Electricity pricing is very complex. There are different rates for residential, commercial, industrial, etc. There are also different rates throughout the day, maximum power demand, etc. 

New Jersey Grants $13M to Hydrogen Drayage Truck Port Pilot

Transport Topics Noël Fletcher December 29, 2025

Truck deployment and testing are expected to start early in 2026. The trucks will support existing drayage operations and supply chain logistics by moving containers short distances from the port to warehouses, rail yards and the next part of the longer freight journeys.

The Age of Nuclear-Powered Commercial Ships May Be Getting Closer

The Wall Street Journal Costas Paris December 29, 2025 $Subscription Based

Nuclear-powered commercial ships offer lower operating expenses, eliminating the need for refueling for approximately 25 years, as fuel constitutes nearly 50% of current operating costs.

How thieves stole 24,000 bottles of Guy Fieri’s tequila in a highway heist

CBS 60 Minutes Sharyn Alfonsi December 28, 2025

There’s no shortage of unbelievable stories that start with tequila, and this is one of them.

It involves a celebrity chef, a rock star and a highway heist that even Hollywood couldn’t dream up.

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