The need to know
The need to know for the week ending 12th June 2020
The need to know from Reuters global network of journalists
As coronavirus sinks global demand, China’s exporters go online to tap domestic market
At this time of the year, Deng Jinling would normally be welcoming foreign buyers to her vacuum flask showroom or cramming her goods into containers to be shipped to customers in the United States.
Japan wants manufacturing back from China, but breaking up supply chains is hard to do
When Japanese firm Iris Ohyama agreed in April to begin producing much-needed face masks in Japan, it marked a win for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who wants to bring manufacturing back from China.
Sugar shipping rush in Brazil amid COVID surge causes huge vessel logjam
More than 70 ships are lined up at Brazil’s port of Santos to load sugar for export in a queue that may take a month to clear after buyers worldwide scrambled to get ahead of possible disruption caused by the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic.
JD.com raises $3.87 bln in Hong Kong secondary listing -sources
Chinese e-commerce retailer JD.com has priced its shares at HK$226 ($29.16) each and raised about $3.87 billion in its Hong Kong secondary listing, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Tesla shares surge past $1,000 as Musk revs up the Semi
Tesla Inc’s (TSLA.O) stock jumped above $1,000 a share on Wednesday after Chief Executive Elon Musk told his staff it was time to bring the Tesla Semi commercial truck to “volume production.”
COLUMN-Europe jump-starts faltering electric vehicle revolution: Andy Home
The electric vehicle revolution has been stalled by COVID-19.
Factbox: Germany paints hydrogen energy future in green, grey, blue and turquoise
Germany’s cabinet passed a national hydrogen strategy on Wednesday as part of a wider push to decarbonise Europe’s largest economy, government sources said.
Coronavirus spreads among fruit and vegetable packers, worrying U.S. officials
From apple packing houses in Washington state to farm workers in Florida and a California county known as “the world’s salad bowl,” outbreaks of the novel coronavirus are emerging at U.S. fruit and vegetable farms and packing plants.
German freight tech start-up Sennder merges with France's Everoad
German freight technology firm Sennder said on Tuesday it was merging with French peer Everoad in a deal that keeps it on track for its target of 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in revenue by 2024.
U.S. sanctions imposed on Iranian shipping network over proliferation take effect
U.S. sanctions imposed on Iran’s shipping network took effect on Monday, months after they were announced in December following accusations of supporting proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
Special Report: COVID deepens the other opioid crisis - a shortage of hospital painkillers
As opioid pills and patches fueled a two-decade epidemic of overdoses in the United States, hospitals faced chronic shortages of the same painkillers in injectable form - narcotics vital to patients on breathing machines.
Rhine water level rises but still too for normal shipping
Water levels on the Rhine in Germany have risen after rain in the past week but are still too shallow for cargo vessels to sail fully loaded on northern sections of the river, traders said on Monday.
German public electric car charging network grows by 60%: BDEW
Germany’s public network for electric vehicles expanded by 10,000 charging spots, an increase of nearly 60%, in the last year, the country’s electricity lobby said on Monday.
Europe's Detroit? Pandemic bursts Toulouse aerospace bubble
Barely three months ago, Serge Dumas had one problem: how to keep up with record demand for the metal fasteners and bolts his small aerospace supply firm manufactures just north of Toulouse.
Port of Los Angeles slammed in May; pandemic, trade war endanger peak season
The coronavirus pandemic and ongoing U.S.-China trade tensions threaten the peak holiday shipping season for the Port of Los Angeles, which just suffered its slowest May in more than a decade, Executive Director Gene Seroka said on Wednesday.
From elsewhere around the web
Tesla battery supplier Catl says new design has one million-mile lifespan. [BBC]
A $26 Billion Truck Company With Zero Revenue Just Surged 103% . [Bloomberg Quint]
Honda's global operations hit by cyber-attack. [BBC]
Amazon is planning to build diagnostic labs as it ramps up Covid-19 testing for warehouse workers. [CNBC]
Shippers shocked by sudden FedEx and UPS hike in domestic US parcel rates. [The Loadstar]
California readies nation’s first electric truck sales and reporting mandate. [FreightWaves]
DGWorld to boost Jebel Ali Port with autonomous vehicles. [Port Technology]
Driver turnover in Q1 started high but rapidly slowed: StayMetrics. [FreightWaves]
Amazon Air's fleet expansion is a bid for logistics domination. [SupplyChainDive]