via donsurber:
Looks like Christmas will suck.
Retailers are bracing themselves for a slowdown. Nike slashed prices 65% because it is overstocked. The company is not alone. The Wall Street Journal reported that the cargo ship traffic will drop 75% this month — ahead of the Christmas shopping season.
The newspaper said, “Ocean carriers are canceling dozens of sailings on the world’s busiest routes during what is normally their peak season, the latest sign of the economic whiplash hitting companies as inflation weighs on global trade and consumer spending.
“The October cancellations are a sharp reversal from just a few months ago, when scarce shipping space pushed freight rates higher and carriers’ profits to record levels. Last October, companies like Walmart Inc. and Home Depot Inc. were chartering their own ships to get around bottlenecks at ports to meet a surge in demand for imports.
“Trans-Pacific shipping rates have plummeted roughly 75% from year-ago levels. The transportation industry is grappling with weaker demand as big retailers cancel orders with vendors and step up efforts to cut inventories. FedEx Corp. recently said it would cancel flights and park cargo planes because of a sharp drop in shipping volumes.”
A 75% drop means you cut the number in half and then cut that number in half.
This would be good news if American factories were humming. They are not.
Fox reported, “U.S. manufacturing growth in September slowed to its lowest point in two years, nearing stagnation due to a decline in orders, according to a gauge released on Monday.