Shipping Rise Holds Promise for Distribution

WASHINGTON, DC-In a sign that business is building up again for distribution center and warehouse tenants, November marked another month of improved shipping activity in the US. Key measures from the US Census Bureau, National Retail Foundation and Cass Information Systems all showed increases in the most recent monthly reports.

According to a Dec. 24 Census Bureau bulletin, shipments of manufactured durable goods climbed for the third consecutive month in November, while new orders moved up for the second month running and inventories fell for the 10th time in 11 months. Following a 0.7% rise in October, durable goods shipments rose $500 million, or 0.3%, in November. The same month, new orders increased $300 million, or 0.2%. Machinery experienced the largest percentage increase in shipments, a sign that manufacturers are gearing up for new production, while computers and electronic products experienced the largest increase in orders. Durable goods inventories fell 0.2%, which could serve as a prelude to a new round of ordering.

Meanwhile, the newest Port Tracker from the DC-based National Retail Federation (NRF) and IHS Global Insight of Lexington, MA projects containerized imports at the 10 US ports regularly surveyed for the report will begin to rise again in February and continue rising in March and April. The three-month trend would break a 31-month streak of year-to-year declines.