Afternoon Coffee Content

The rising tensions in the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China is severely testing a complex relationship — especially in technology. Santa Clara-based Nvidia Corporation and one of the leading brands in trucks, Volvo, have come together to work on autonomous truck and other commercial vehicles technology. And e-commerce company Shopify has unveiled products such as “a fulfillment network and digital inventory optimization tool.” Afternoon Coffee: your source for procurement and supply chain news.

Procurify, a cloud-based spend management vendor based in Canada, raised $20 million in a Series B funding round and said in an announcement that it plans to grow its team and expand into global markets. The United States' tensions with Iran are causing problems for ExxonMobil's deal in Iraq, Reuters reports. And in logistics, Walmart looks for autonomous vehicles to help it in the "middle mile." Afternoon Coffee goes the extra mile for news about procurement and supply chains.

Fiverr, the online freelancer services marketplace, has released its second annual “The Independent Workforce: Sizing the Market in the United States” study. The report estimates the population size and income of U.S.-based freelancer/independent workers. On trade talks, China states its case as negotiations with the U.S. are set to resume. As the Paris Air Show winds down, Airbus airs displeasure with Boeing's 737 MAX deal with British Airways' owner. Afternoon Coffee: The latest in procurement and supply chain news.

in light of the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China, Apple asked some of its major suppliers to calculate the cost of moving 15% to 30% of its supply chain from China to Southeast Asia. The Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM) has put out newly drafted standards to help customers better understand the ethical, ecological and economic aspects of their supply chains. And a new artificial intelligence supply chain solution helps not only predict but manage the shortage in the supply of drugs, inflation and reimbursements. Afternoon Coffee: your source for procurement and supply chain news.

A new report by the Hackett Group has revealed that procurement organizations were prioritizing the transformation of digital technologies in specific areas. MBO Partners published its 9th annual “State of Independence” report, representing the longest-running study of the independent workforce in the U.S. And Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia warns against China cyber threats. Afternoon Coffee: your source for procurement and supply chain news.

Intel Corp. is taking another look at its global supply chain in the wake of the tariff war between the U.S. and China. American chip suppliers to Huawei have been quietly lobbying with the U.S. government to lift the ban. And Noble Supply and Logistics has received a $90 million contract with the Defense Logistics Agency. Afternoon Coffee: your source for procurement and supply chain news.

With share prices nearly doubling by the end of the first day of trading, Fiverr's IPO looked to be off to quite a start. Walmart Inc., Target Corp. and over 600 other companies have written to President Donald Trump to resolve the trade dispute with China. And on the heels of Gap and H&M, Ralph Lauren has also committed to a sourcing goal for sustainable cotton. Afternoon Coffee: your source for procurement and supply chain news.

Ratings agency S&P has forecast that the U.S. ban on Huawei was more likely to hit U.S. suppliers to Huawei than telecom companies. Top company executives said plant-based burger maker Beyond Meat's supply chain was ready for fast-food volumes. And Walmart is finally taking the steps necessary to fully integrate Jet.com into its own retail business, over two years after it bought the e-commerce platform. Afternoon Coffee: your source for procurement and supply chain news.

The dust continues to settle on FedEx’s severing of its domestic air-package delivery contract with Amazon, leaving analysts asking what the implications are for the future of logistics. Experts and analysts are of the opinion that the current trade tariff war between the U.S. and China may see changes happening in the supply chain for robotics manufacturers. And wanting to take advantage of that country's vibrant tech sector, automaker Ford Motor Co. has set up a research center in Tel Aviv, Israel. Afternoon Coffee: bringing you the latest in automotive history's ironies (and other procurement and supply chain news).

CRM giant Salesforce is buying Tableau Software, a provider of user-friendly data visualization tools, for $15.7 billion, according to the AP. Target has been putting in place a blockchain-powered solution for supply chain management named "ConsenSource." And DHL Express recently celebrated its 50th birthday. Afternoon Coffee: bringing you the latest procurement and supply chain news.

In one of the biggest mergers in U.S. history, United Technologies Corp. and U.S. contractor Raytheon Co. will come together to create a new company estimated at $121 billion. The ongoing tariff war between the U.S. and China has thrown operations at the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach into a barely controlled chaos. And the CEO of Proterra Inc. has gone on record saying that it was all but inevitable that zero-emissions buses would soon be crisscrossing American roads. Afternoon Coffee: crisscrossing the world (via the interwebs) to bring you the latest in procurement and supply chain news.

Bloomberg reports that "U.S. employers added the fewest workers in three months and wage gains cooled,” as the Trump administration's trade policies have likely affected continued economic growth. In our Commodities Roundup this Friday, MetalMiner editor Fouad Egbaria examines the copper market surplus, innovations in the solar sector using tin, and the oil price decline, among other news items. And Spend Matters Chief Research Officer Pierre Mitchell examines a flawed, misleading watchdog report on Ivalua's contract with New York City government agencies. Afternoon Coffee: your source for procurement and supply chain news.