Things are changing:
- Slowing:
- Warehouse vacancy rates — now 5.7% —double what it was in 2002 and up from 2019 (4.6%)
- Package delivery employment was down in December (yes, December).
- Costing more: 40-foot container spot rates Shanghai-to-Rotterdam week ending Jan. 4, up 115% to $3577 — probably an impact of Houthis.
- Retailers are pushing back against price increases: Carrefour, one of the world’s largest grocers, is punishing Pepsi for raising prices by discontinuing some popular items like Pepsi and Doritos.
- A new approach to distributing drugs: Eli Lilly is offering weight loss drugs by mail order while connecting people with an independent telehealth company that prescribes obesity medications.
Buckle up — it will be an interesting year that warrants concern.