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01 / 05
Amazon and Walmart Compete to Better Serve Rural Communities

Bloomberg | Goods Market Efficiency

Amazon and Walmart Compete to Better Serve Rural Communities

“Many rural online shoppers are used to waiting half a week or longer for purchases to arrive. Amazon, which disclosed its $4 billion rural delivery push last year, has narrowed that to less than 24 hours for 1 in 5 rural and small-town households, according to a Bloomberg analysis of delivery times for commonly purchased items. The company offers 48-hour delivery to 62% of rural households, the analysis found.

The payoff could be huge. Rural shoppers in the US collectively spend $1 trillion a year on clothing, electronics, household goods and other items, representing about 20% of retail purchases excluding cars and gasoline, according to Morgan Stanley. Amazon aims to recondition those shoppers to expect quick delivery, which would play to its strengths and make the company top-of-mind for online purchases.

Amazon’s biggest obstacle is Walmart Inc., which claimed the heartland decades ago during an aggressive expansion on its path to become the world’s largest retailer. Walmart has spent years training rural shoppers to come to its stores for groceries and then snag clothes, TVs and crockpots while there. It has a big head start on Amazon in proximity, with stores and Sam’s Clubs located within a 10-mile drive of nearly two-thirds of rural households, Bloomberg’s analysis shows. Walmart is also upping its e-commerce game, turning its thousands of locations into delivery hubs and pickup locations for products ordered online.”

From Bloomberg.

Reuters | Trade

19 WTO Members Agree Among Themselves Not to Impose E-Commerce Duties

“The U.S. and ‌more than a dozen other countries including Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Australia on Thursday launched their own pact to not impose duties on e-commerce after no agreement was reached to end deadlock with Brazil, a document showed.

Brazil upheld its opposition to a four-year extension of a global deal at World Trade Organization talks ​in Geneva which concluded on Thursday. However, Turkey, which had previously been against it, dropped its opposition, a WTO spokesperson said.

Failure ​at a high-level WTO meeting in Yaounde, Cameroon, in March to renew the long-standing moratorium on duties for cross-border ⁠streaming and downloads marked another setback for the WTO, as business groups said it raised serious concerns about the ability of the ​organisation to set global trade rules.

The moratorium, agreed in 1998 and regularly renewed since, bars duties on cross-border electronic transmissions such as streaming music ​or films and downloading software.”

From Reuters.

BBC | Air Transport

Japan Airlines Trials Humanoid Robots as Ground Handlers

“Japan Airlines (JAL) will start using humanoid robots in ground handling tasks at Tokyo’s Haneda airport from May, in a two-year trial it said is aimed at easing employees’ workload.

For a start, the Chinese-made robots will be deployed to load and unload cargo containers, JAL and GMO AI & Robotics, its partner in the project, said in a demonstration to the media on Monday.

Japan’s aviation industry is wrestling with a labour crunch brought on by an increase in inbound tourism and a declining working-age population, said JAL, which employs some 4,000 ground handling staff.

The carrier hopes that these robots can also be used to clean cabins and operate ground support equipment in future.”

From BBC.

Reuters | Cost of Material Goods

Kia CEO Signals Price Cuts in Europe to Compete with China

“Starting this year, Kia has narrowed its vehicle price gap with Chinese models in Europe to 15-20% from 20-25% previously depending on markets, Song said, according to ​a recording of the event obtained by Reuters.

The move highlights how Europe has become a key battleground between legacy ​automakers and Chinese electric vehicle firms such as BYD, as they pursue rapid overseas expansion amid ⁠flagging sales in China and effective exclusion from the U.S. market.”

From Reuters.

Reuters | Infrastructure & Transportation

FedEx Launches Same-Day Delivery amid US Delivery Race

“FedEx said on Tuesday it had launched a same-day delivery service ​with last-mile delivery software company OneRail, ‌as retailers and logistics firms race to speed up order fulfillment.

The service, called FedEx SameDay ​Local, lets customers choose narrower ​delivery windows, including two-hour and end-of-day ⁠options. FedEx said it links customers ​to a national network of more than ​1,000 delivery providers through a system that matches orders with the nearest vehicle and driver.

The ​move comes as companies across the ​sector invest in faster fulfillment and stronger last-mile networks ‌to ⁠meet rising customer demand for quicker and more flexible delivery.”

From Reuters.