Tag Archives: Imports

Hurricane Sandy, New Jersey ports and retail supply chain impact

An article in the Wall Street Journal (November 3, 2012) describes power supply issues at the ports in New Jersey causing diversions of inbound ships to Norfolk and other locations. But shipping to Dubai from New York costs $ 3000 … Continue reading

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Japanese multinationals importing back into Japan

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (September 17,2012) describes automobiles made in Thailand by Nissan but ported back for sales in Japan. At 1 million yen, it is 65% of the price of a Japanese made car and 34 % of the … Continue reading

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Smuggled HCFC-22 foils ban on the refrigerant in the US

An article in the New York Times (September 9,2012) describes the smuggling into the US of HCFC-22, a refrigerant that the US has banned due to its link to global warming. As production of the product gets phased out, its … Continue reading

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Moving production to the US despite lower Chinese manufacturing costs

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (June 25, 2012) describes several examples of companies that moved production to the US from China, despite up to 30% lower Chinese manufacturing costs. For Lightsaver, the 30% lower manufacturing costs were compensated by costs of … Continue reading

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A shortage of jute bags hurts storage of a bumper wheat crop in India

An article in the Wall Street Journal (June 23, 2012) describes the large wheat harvest in India, but a shortage of jute bags. Indian law specifies that 100% of the wheat should use jute bags, to protect the industry and … Continue reading

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Fracking in the US and guar seed farmer impact in India

An article in the New York Times (July 16,2012) describes how growth in fracking for oil has resulted in increased demand for guar, a water absorbing seed grown primarily in India. With prices rising dramatically amidst growing oil company demand, … Continue reading

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Oversupply of steel pipe in the supply chain ?

An article in the Wall Street Journal (May 1, 2012) describes a plant expansion by Timken in Ohio and a new plant in Texas to be opened by Tianjan Pipe, both focused on steel production for pipe used by the … Continue reading

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Harmonizing trade regulations and supply chain impact

In an article in the Wall Street Journal (May 1,2012) Cass Sunstein, administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, describes steps taken by the US government to harmonize regulations across countries to reduce costs. Examples cited … Continue reading

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The global garbage supply chain

An essay in the Wall Street Journal (April 18,2012) describes computers as the top export from China to the US, and garbage as America’s greatest export to China. With Americans generating 7 lbs of garbage per person per day, New … Continue reading

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India, China trade flows and market access

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (Feb 27,2012) describes the 43 billion dollars of exports from China to India and the 10 billion exports from India to China. This trade imbalance has resulted in 46 complaints by India to the WTO about … Continue reading

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