Supply Chain: 2023 So Far in 10 Data Points
Our core scenario is that 2023 is the year that supply chains return to normal and companies turn to long-term supply chain strategies. We identify 10 data points that show supply chains mostly returning to normal, though there are notable areas of concern. We also flag what’s next for each measure.
Excerpt from the beginning of the full analysis from S&P Global follows
Key findings
- Our core scenario is that 2023 is the year that supply chains return to normal and companies turn to long-term supply chain strategies. We identify 10 data points that show supply chains mostly returning to normal, though there are notable areas of concern. We also flag what’s next for each measure.
- US seaborne imports of containerized freight fell by 16% year over year in the first half of 2023, reducing pressure on logistics networks. It was April 2009 since global manufacturing supplier delivery times were as fast as they were in May. Containerized freight costs fell to $1,050 per forty-foot container in June on Asia-US west coast lanes.
- Light vehicle sales increased to 28.8 million vehicles in the first five months of the year but remain below pre-pandemic levels. Lithium carbonate prices fell to $20.4 per pound despite rising electric vehicle production. Exports of computer chips from the big four exporting centers fell to $34.1 billion.
- Dutch chip-making equipment exports to mainland China have risen by 47% in the three months to April 30 versus the prior three-month period. Technology-based rivalry between the US/EU and mainland China also helps the reshoring process — Indian mobile phone exports jumped to $5.1 billion in the first four months of 2023.
- Existing problems continue to make themselves felt. Inflation in wages is ongoing and reached 5.1% for US manufacturing in first quarter 2023 and will only decline slowly. The war in Ukraine continues to affect food supply chains, with EU imports of cereals and oil seeds from Ukraine having climbed by 9.9 million metric tons in the first four months of the year.
