Supply Chain Intelligence Brief

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TRUCKING

Bye-bye driver shortage: the economy remains trucking’s top concern

CCJ Jason Cannon October 27, 2025

After dropping to the ninth overall spot last year, Driver Shortage fell out of the top 10 for the first time in the survey’s 21-year history. It may be gone from the Top 10, but it is not forgotten. Driver Shortage settled at No. 12. Motor carriers still rank the need to find and retain qualified drivers as their Nos. 5 and 6 concerns, respectively.

Link: American Transportation Research Institute For the Third Year in a Row, the Economy is the Trucking Industry’s Top Concern

ArcBest headlines latest buyers of Yellow terminals

Freight Waves Todd Maiden October 24, 2025

Handlers of defunct Yellow Corp.’s estate have asked a federal bankruptcy court in Delaware to approve the sale of four terminals for $6.1 million. ABF Freight parent, ArcBest, is listed as a buyer of a small location in Alabama. The other buyers appear to be real estate investors.

Parcel carriers face shifting market, multitude of challenges as 2025 comes to a close

DC Velocity Gary Frantz October 24, 2025

Regional parcel players are expanding nationwide. Last-mile upstarts are increasing scope and coverage, chipping away at their more-established rivals’ market share. Shippers are more interested than ever in diversifying their carrier base, made all the more attractive by inexpensive and easy-to-use multicarrier management technology.

SHIPPERS / 3PLs

‘We admired problems’: C.H. Robinson’s CEO on turning around a logistics leader

Semafor Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson October 24, 2025

C.H. Robinson is an $18 billion link in the global supply chain — the largest truckload broker in North America. Under Dave Bozeman, its CEO since 2023, the 120-year-old company is repositioning itself as what Deutsche Bank analysts called “an undervalued AI play.”

INDUSTRY

Intermodal volumes head up in September, reports IANA

Logistics Management Jeff Berman October 24, 2025

Trailers, at 37,757, fell 19.7% annually, and domestic containers, at 745,507, posted a 5.8% annual increase. All domestic equipment, which is comprised of trailers and domestic containers, saw a 4.2% annual gain, to 783,264. ISO, or international containers, at 767,335, rose 0.6% annually.

SUSTAINABILITY / SAFETY / SECURITY

Volvo’s VNR Electric Reaches 20 Million Customer Miles

Transport Topics Keiron Greenhalgh October 26, 2025

More than 700 Volvo VNR Electric trucks are now operating across the United States and Canada, VTNA said at American Trucking Associations’ 2025 Management Conference and Exhibition.

Tesla expects electric Semi debut in late 2026

CCJ Jason Cannon October 26, 2025

Announced in 2017, Tesla’s fully electric Class 8 has been delayed at least four times and is six years overdue. However, Vice President of Vehicle Engineering Lars Moravy said all signs continue to point to a 2026 mass production launch.

Related: Transport Topics Tesla Semi Tractor Serial Production Still on Schedule

Why fleets that just want to run diesel should care about the Messy Middle

Fleet Owner Josh Fisher October 24, 2025

Five takeaways today’s trucking operations can glean from NACFE’s latest Run on Less study, which featured 13 fleets running diesel, natural gas, battery-electric, and hydrogen powertrains

Nuclear Verdicts Keep Getting Worse for Trucking

Transport Topics Connor D. Wolf October 26, 2025

The resulting research showed that one in four auto accidents that result in a nuclear verdict involved a commercial trucking company. The researchers defined nuclear verdicts as being $10 million or more. They also found that nuclear verdicts have been getting larger in recent years across industries beyond just trucking, with overall costs reaching $529 billion by 2022.

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