Logistics operators' efforts to automate more warehouses are accelerating as wages rise and consumer demand for speedy deliveries increases, the WSJ Logistics Report's Liz Young writes.

North American companies ordered nearly 18,000 robots valued at about $1.2 billion in the first half of this year, according to a recent report from the Association for Advancing Automation. That was up 2% from the same period last year in terms of units ordered and about 7% in value. Companies last year bought more than 36,700 robots, the highest number of orders since 2022.

Businesses are now investing in the technology even as they adjust to new U.S. tariffs and surging fuel prices, in part because they are looking to rein in costs, logistics experts say. GXO, for one, has spent nearly $1 billion over the past five years to automate more of its buildings.

Investments in warehouse technology are expected to keep growing, with 92% of companies recently surveyed by Interact Analysis saying they plan to spend more on automation this year.

   -- Amazon agreed to a warehouse-automation supply agreement with AutoStore 
      for undisclosed terms. (SupplyChain24/7) 

Global Trade

General Motors and Ford Motor are clashing as they jockey for tailored tariffs and policies, while talks intensify around overhauling a North American trade deal crucial to each company's business model, the Journal's Sharon Terlep and Gavin Bade write.

Ford, for instance, wants higher tariffs on imports from South Korea, where GM builds its most inexpensive cars. GM is targeting aspects of Ford's electric-vehicle battery strategy. The friction reflects how fundamentally different the two Detroit giants have become as diverging manufacturing footprints and supply chains have led them to seek contrasting favors in Washington.

GM, in a statement, said vehicles made with North American labor and parts should receive preferential tariff treatment, while Ford touted its position as the country's top vehicle manufacturer and employer of hourly auto workers.

Number of the Day

U.S. retail sales in July, down 0.6% from June, when sales edged up 0.2%, according to the Commerce Department.

Ocean Shipping

Chinese carrier Sea Legend is starting the first regular cargo service to Europe through Arctic waters, seeking to reap the benefits of quicker travel time and less fuel use, the WSJ's Sune Engel Rasmussen and Stu Woo write.

Sea Legend dispatched the containership Dubai Tower from Ningbo, China, to Felixstowe in the U.K. on what it calls the Arctic Express, following a route along Russia's north coast. The voyage by the vessel, which is capable of carrying 1,740 20-foot containers, is the biggest commercial step in the Arctic since an A.P. Moller-Maersk containership first completed the route in 2018.

In Other News

   -- The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index fell to 
      51 in August from 55.2 in July. (WSJ) 
 
   -- The eurozone swung to an adjusted trade surplus in June, as energy 
      imports fell, helping the economy to grow faster than the U.S. in the 
      second quarter. (WSJ) 
 
   -- Canadian factory sales rose 0.1% in June from May, marking a fifth 
      consecutive gain. (WSJ) 
 
   -- China's economic momentum slowed broadly in July, weighed down by muted 
      consumer spending and slumping investment, according to official data. 
      (WSJ) 
 
   -- Diana Shipping is dropping its bid to acquire Genco Shipping & Trading, 
      ending a nearly yearlong takeover battle. (WSJ) 
 
   -- Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the Trump administration doesn't 
      want Apple to buy memory chips from China. (WSJ) 
 
   -- The union representing Canada's auto workers says Stellantis disclosed 
      its intention to sell a Toronto-area factory. (WSJ) 
 
   -- Mexico is promoting an overland route in the country's south as an 
      alternative for global trade amid disruptions at major maritime 
      chokepoints including the Panama Canal. (Bloomberg) 
 
   -- Target has developed a so-called digital twin of its middle-mile 
      inventory positioning system called Proxima aimed at helping improve 
      decisions across its supply chain. (SupplyChainDive) 
 
   -- The number of e-commerce shipments into the customs zone of Belgium's 
      Liege Airport fell 24% year-over-year in July following the introduction 
      of a new EU charge on low-value parcels. (Air Cargo News) 
 
   -- Tanker movements have dropped sharply but traffic overall through the Bab 
      al-Mandeb is holding steady despite a Houthi blockade of ships linked to 
      Saudi Arabia. (Lloyd's List) 

About Us

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at mark.long@wsj.com. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long, Liz Young and Paul Berger.

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