By Paul Page 

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Darker clouds are gathering over North American trade talks. President Donald Trump's chief trade negotiator issued a downbeat assessment after the latest negotiations over a new North American Free Trade Agreement, the WSJ's Dudley Althaus and Jacob M. Schlesinger write, while Canada and Mexico added their own grim outlooks for the effort to rewrite the 23-year-old trade deal. The negative statements after the fifth round of negotiations concluded this week in Mexico City cast fresh doubts over the ability of the countries to reach any sort of accord by the March deadline that they've set. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer decried the lack of headway and criticized Canada and Mexico for refusing to "seriously engage" on controversial U.S. proposals that seek to "rebalance" North American trade. Canada and Mexico officials say wide gaps remain but blame the U.S. for digging in on proposals they said would weaken the pact. One Mexican official said the country won't offer "a counterproposal on something that is unacceptable."

Amazon.com Inc. isn't playing around with the toy market this holiday season. A surge in holiday shopping online has made Amazon something of kingmaker in the retail arena, and the WSJ's Laura Stevens writes the e-commerce company is bulking up its role in seller supply chains with a program called Launchpad that helps companies forecast demand and plan for the critical shopping period. Wonder Workshop, which makes the $200 Cue robot toy, expects to boost sales this season as it uses the program to manage fluctuations in demand and pricing. The toy maker's plans highlight a shift in market strategies: Although Wonder Workshop is selling Cue in the brick-and-mortar chains that have been the cornerstone of holiday retail sales, online channels increasingly make or break new products. Companies are using Amazon's online reviews and marketing on the site as an alternative to persuading traditional retailers to add a new item to store shelves, and Amazon is even buying inventory from the startups to sell directly on its site.

Changing consumer tastes in food are raising tensions in traditional retail supply chains. A dispute with a major customer along with higher shipping costs following the recent hurricanes cut into results at Campbell Soup Co. in the most recent quarter, the WSJ's Austen Hufford reports, adding to pressure on the company as it copes with a yearslong slide in sales. Campbell is in a growing line-up of packaged processed food companies being whipsawed by shifts in demand and distribution in the retail food business. Campbell and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which accounts for 20% of Campbell's sales, have been locked in a disagreement over promotional pricing and shelf space for canned goods. The dispute is part of the broader strain in relations between suppliers and retailers as store owners look to court consumers who are more interest in healthier foods. Campbell is investing that area but the company will need help from retailers in getting the goods in front of buying customers.

SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGIES

Apple Inc.'s biggest contract manufacturer is coming under new criticism for violating labor laws in its efforts to ramp up production of the new iPhone X. Taiwan-based Apple supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry, better known as Foxconn, has been using students who have illegally worked overtime to assemble the phone, the Financial Times reports, as the company struggles to catch up with demand after production delays. The news puts another harsh spotlight on Apple supply chain that has been beset by production delays for new products, a turnabout for a consumer electronics giant that's long been a model for its management of a far-flung and fast-moving manufacturing and distribution network. In this case, high school students say some 3,000 students were sent to a factory in Zhengzhou, China, where they routinely worked 11-hour days assembling the iPhone X, which is against Chinese law. Apple and Foxconn both say the students were working voluntarily and that they are halting the overtime work.

QUOTABLE

IN OTHER NEWS

U.S. sales of previously-owned homes slipped 0.9% in October from a year ago. (WSJ)

The Dow Jones Transportation Average is on track for its first quarterly decline in more than a year despite a gain in the broader stock market. (WSJ)

Federal trade regulators are recommending the White House impose big tariffs on imported washing machines to protect U.S. manufacturers. (WSJ)

Mexico is raising its minimum wage above the rate of inflation. (WSJ)

Auto parts supplier Takata Corp. set the details of the $1.6 billion sale of the bulk of its business to Key Safety Systems Inc. (WSJ)

Chemical giant Axalta Coating Systems is in talks about a possible takeover by Japan's Nippon Paint Holdings Co. (WSJ)

Mitsubishi Corp. is creating an infrastructure fund to manage up to $890 million in assets in Japan. (Nikkei Asian Review)

India's imports of North American coal are soaring as the country faces a domestic fuel shortage. (Reuters)

Chinese cargo airline SF Express bought two 747-400 freighters for $49 million on Alibaba's Taobao online commerce site. (South China Morning Post)

About 30% of Americans said in a survey that they have had parcels stolen from their front doors. (USA Today)

Some Instacart workers planned a "no-delivery day" to protest the grocery delivery company's wages. (Fast Company)

Switzerland's exports of watches rose in October at the fastest monthly pace since 2013. (Bloomberg)

Swiss watchmaker Omega has started selling its watches online. (TechCrunch)

Middle East express delivery company Aramex named Bashar Obeid chief executive, replacing Hussein Hachem. (The National)

Hapag-Lloyd AG is buying 3,700 refrigerated containers from Maersk Container Industry. (Port Technology)

The Baltic Dry Index measure of the dry bulk shipping market will undergo a makeover early next year. (Lloyd's List)

China Cosco Shipping's tanker division ordered seven large crude carriers. (Splash 24/7)

Freight train service was launched between China's Jiangxi Province and Hanoi in Vietnam. (Xinhua)

Hormel Foods Corp. named Glenn Leitch executive vice-president of supply chain. (Food Business News)

Breakthru Beverage Group is merging with Texas-based Republic National Distribution Co. to form the second largest alcohol distributor in the U.S. (Chicago Tribune)

ABOUT US

Paul Page is deputy editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Follow him at @PaulPage, and follow the entire WSJ Logistics Report team: @brianjbaskin , @jensmithWSJ and @EEPhillips_WSJ. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.

Write to Paul Page at paul.page@wsj.com

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 22, 2017 06:57 ET (11:57 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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