IAMC News Briefs—Week of June 6, 2022
SUPPLY CHAIN DIVE—Over the next three years Walmart plans to roll out four super-high-tech fulfillment centers, with the first scheduled to open this summer in Joliet, IL. Featuring automation, machine learning and robotics to speed deliveries, the new facilities will help the firm hit next- or two-day delivery to 95 percent of the US population. Some 4,000 workers will be employed at the new assets.
https://www.supplychaindive.com/news/walmart-fulfillment-center-tech/624880/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-06-07%20Supply%20Chain%20Dive%20%5Bissue:42268%5D&utm_term=Supply%20Chain%20Dive
GLOBEST.COM—Some 83 percent of US manufacturers are likely to reshore or nearshore jobs, according to a recent survey. The Thomas State of North American Manufacturing Report reports that this is up, impressively so, from only 54 percent in March of 2020. The groundswell of support is being driven, obviously, by supply chain challenges, and, “most notably,” the ability of Mexico facilities to ease a US vacancy rate, which currently hovers around 3.3 percent, says Barbi Reuter, a principal of PICOR.
https://www.globest.com/2022/06/08/us-manufacturers-bring-jobs-closer-to-home/
COMMERCIAL OBSERVER—New York City industrial owners (and other commercial asset owners) will be getting a tax break if city councilman Keith Powers has his way. Powers has introduced legislation that would lift the 3.9 percent tax rate on annual rents for another three years. But the measure comes with a small catch: the business has to be located below 96th Street. “The pandemic devastated our city’s small businesses,” Powers said in a statement. “Relieving the commercial rent tax puts money back into the pockets of struggling business owners.”
https://commercialobserver.com/2022/06/city-council-proposal-would-pause-new-yorks-commercial-rent-tax-for-years/?utm_campaign=daily-roundup&utm_content=2022-03-06-27923266&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=CO%20Daily%20Newsletter
TRANSPORT DIVE—Trucking giant Ryder has turned its back on a $4.4 billion takeover bid by shareholder HG Vora Capital. HG currently owns 9.9 percent of the firm. The bid was not, in the words of chair and CEO Robert Sanchez, “indicative of the value of our company.” Not surprisingly, the Ryder C-Suite has formed a unified front: “We still see plenty of runway with the business going forward,” added CFO John Diez.
https://www.transportdive.com/news/ryder-rejects-hg-vora-acquisition-offer/625010/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-06-07%20Transport%20Dive%20%5Bissue:42271%5D&utm_term=Transport%20Dive
CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD—The pressure is mounting for all commercial property executives to get on the ESG (environmental, social, governance) bandwagon. Five key drivers identified by Cushman & Wakefield are: Regulatory demand: 39 percent of global carbon emissions come from the built environment, driving regional policies on carbon emissions and net-zero goals; Impact of millennials and women: Millennials—and millennial women especially—are twice as likely as the general population to invest in ESG-focused corporations; Risk mitigation: More than 79 percent of investors see ESG-related risks as a determinant of where they place their capital; Positive business outcomes: Well-managed ESG strategies result in cost reductions, reduced regulatory intervention and increased employee retention; and Social strengths: ESG initiatives addressing social impacts result in high-yield returns.
https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/insights/the-edge/why-esg-matters-to-the-future-of-investing