IN THE NEWS: 2025’s logistics risks include tariffs, labor strife

Supply Chain Dive
January 14, 2025
Max Garland

FROM THE ARTICLE: The new year will introduce a bevy of challenges for shippers’ logistics strategies.

President-elect Donald Trump’s push for higher tariffs, potential labor disruptions and pricing pressures are among the developments supply chain managers will have to navigate in 2025. No transport mode will be spared, with carriers in the ocean, air, rail, truck and parcel delivery spaces all grappling with their share of complexities.

Supply Chain Dive spoke with several experts about 2025’s logistics risks and how shippers can prepare. Here’s what we found.

Labor disputes and tariffs could also influence rail shippers’ 2025 strategies. Companies are likely to pull forward some rail volume to reduce their exposure to broader logistics risks, according to Jay Cushing, Senior Bond Analyst at bond research firm Gimme Credit.

“For the railroads, customers, and investors we think intermittent labor disruptions and tariff uncertainties should be viewed as a ‘cost’ of doing business — less of a non-recurring item,” Cushing said.
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Elevated U.S.-Mexico trade activity has strained available rail capacity and disrupted trade flows at times. The agriculture industry felt the pinch last year as major U.S. railroads paused grain shipments into Mexico. Outbound rail activity has been in a similar boat.

“There has been a significant increase in outbound demand from Mexico over the last 18 months,” said Paul Brashier, ITS Logistics’ VP of Global Supply Chain. “Capacity has not kept up with the growing demand.” Brashier added that Mexico will need to bolster its infrastructure to meet heightened activity.

Read the full article.