Two leading research firms measure “reshoring” differently, so their analysis rarely agrees. Conclusions for 2020 were no exception, but U.S. manufacturers say they’re committed to reducing their dependence on foreign supplies. The Reshoring Initiative’s index, which tracks jobs and foreign direct investment (FDI), reported a combined total of 160,649 new announcements for 2020. Reshoring exceeded…
There is no end in sight for global supply delays stemming from trade restrictions and transportation logjams. Demand continues to rise for U.S.-manufactured goods, but raw material and component disruptions are hindering production expansion. “Recent record-long lead times, wide-scale shortages of critical basic materials, rising commodities prices and difficulties in transporting products are continuing to…
Beginning in the second quarter of 2021, LCD panel prices have kept increasing. Vendors expect that high prices will continue for at least 6 months. There are a lot of manufacturers of LCD modules but there are only a few LCD panel or LCD glass manufacturers in the world. The reasons are: In order to…
Unsurprisingly, the electronics industry is reacting favorably to President Biden’s executive order to review critical U.S. supply chains. The Covid-19 pandemic exposed the United States’ dependence on foreign supplies including semiconductors and materials used in PPE, medical tests and pharmaceuticals. Reliance on foreign sources is not a new issue in electronics but tariffs, the China-U.S.…
Still-surging U.S. demand for Chinese imports saw Asia-U.S. West Coast ocean rates climb more than 5 percent again this week (Feb.22), at a time when demand for ocean freight (and spot rates) normally level off and begin to decrease in the weeks after Chinese New Year (see chart below), according to freight marketplace Freightos. China-U.S.…
China- U.S. ocean rates are climbing as China’s manufacturing stays open over the Lunar New Year holiday. Rates to the U.S. West Coast increased 6 percent and are up 22 percent since the end of the year, according to freight marketplace Freightos. Asia-North Europe climbed 6 percent to a new high of $8,455/FEU. Air cargo…
A perfect storm of events have converged to create the semiconductor shortage of 2021. High-level collaboration across the electronics supply chain could make the deficit less painful, experts say. Shortages often prompt less-than-optimum purchasing behaviors. Competitive bidding for inventory drives prices up. Exceptions to approved vendor lists become common. And double-ordering – where purchase orders…
The burgeoning semiconductor shortage of 2021 hit chipmakers “like a ton of bricks,” according to one distributor. Of course, that’s not the phrase semiconductor suppliers would use. But the supply chain is in the midst of a perfect storm. A convergence of events is creating what’s expected to be a shortage of CPUs, MPUs, memory,…
U.S. manufacturing activity remained robust at the start of the year although pandemic-related supply and worker constraints curtailed production and drove prices up. The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index, the PMI, decreased by 1.8 percent in January to 58.7 from the December level of 60.5. The index remains well above 50, the line of…
On December 31, Texas Instruments Inc. and Avnet Inc. formally end their 40-year distribution relationship. Avnet’s success in replacing that business – estimated at 10 percent of Avnet’s sales — will be evident in the future, said Phil Gallagher, who was named Avnet’s CEO on November 23. Avnet’s fiscal 2020 sales reached $17.6 billion. TI…