Freight and fulfillment pressures are still tightening around merchants, even as technology budgets shift. For example, the U.S. retail inventories to sales ratio hit 1.33 in May 2024, while 31% of organizations reported material shortages that directly hit revenue in 2023. We pulled together the supply chain statistics that explain why cash flow, supplier risk, and logistics capacity are moving in the same direction.
Key Takeaways
- 5.0% increase in U.S. freight rates from March 2024 to April 2024, as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index for transportation and warehousing services
- 2.4% year-over-year increase in U.S. producer prices for transportation and warehousing services as of April 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- The U.S. Producer Price Index for freight services (e.g., trucking) increased 6.0% in 2023 compared with 2022, according to BLS PPI for trucking
- 31% of organizations experienced material shortages that caused revenue impact in 2023, according to Gartner
- 12.4% of total U.S. imports by value were from China in 2023, according to U.S. Census Bureau trade data
- 78% of supply chain organizations say they need better supplier risk visibility to meet regulatory requirements, according to Reuters Events survey results
- 14% of global respondents reported using blockchain in supply chain for at least one use case in 2023, according to IBM survey results
- 49% of supply chain executives planned to implement or expand IoT in their supply chain in 2023, according to Gartner
- 61% of organizations say they are actively using scenario planning for supply chain risks, according to a 2023 survey by KPMG
- The U.S. retail inventories-to-sales ratio was 1.33 in May 2024, per U.S. Census Bureau data
- 4.6% of total U.S. retail inventory was held by specialty retail merchants in 2022, based on U.S. Census Bureau retail trade composition
- Retailers that use predictive analytics can reduce inventory costs by 20% on average, according to Gartner research summary
- The global supply chain management software market is forecast to reach $31.1 billion by 2027, according to Fortune Business Insights
- The global logistics market is estimated at $8.2 trillion in 2023, according to Statista Industry Report
- Global 3PL market size was $1.44 trillion in 2022 and is projected to grow to $2.0 trillion by 2027, according to IMARC Group
U.S. merchant supply chains face higher freight costs and material shortages, while blockchain, IoT, and analytics drive resilience.
Related reading
01 · Category
Cost Analysis7 stats
01
5.0% increase in U.S. freight rates from March 2024 to April 2024, as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index for transportation and warehousing services
02
2.4% year-over-year increase in U.S. producer prices for transportation and warehousing services as of April 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
03
The U.S. Producer Price Index for freight services (e.g., trucking) increased 6.0% in 2023 compared with 2022, according to BLS PPI for trucking
04
Just-in-time (JIT) logistics programs can reduce inventory holding costs by 10%–30% according to peer-reviewed logistics literature summarized by Supply Chain Management Review
05
A 2019 peer-reviewed study found that supply chain risk management practices can reduce procurement disruption costs by 15% in modeled scenarios
06
8.0% of U.S. import value was attributable to ocean freight costs in 2022 (i.e., average ocean freight cost as a share of import value), reflecting the freight component embedded in landed import costs
07
6.8 days median working capital conversion cycle lengthened due to supply chain constraints in 2021 (days impact), tying merchant supply frictions to cash flow
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
For cost analysis in the merchant industry, rising freight and logistics pressures are clearly showing up in expenses, with U.S. transportation and warehousing service prices up 2.4% year over year as of April 2024 and ocean freight accounting for 8.0% of U.S. import value in 2022, while a longer working capital conversion cycle of 6.8 days in 2021 highlights how supply chain constraints can further strain costs.
02 · Category
Industry Trends6 stats
01
31% of organizations experienced material shortages that caused revenue impact in 2023, according to Gartner
02
12.4% of total U.S. imports by value were from China in 2023, according to U.S. Census Bureau trade data
03
78% of supply chain organizations say they need better supplier risk visibility to meet regulatory requirements, according to Reuters Events survey results
04
A peer-reviewed study in 2020 reported that supplier diversification reduces expected supply chain disruption risk by about 25% under uncertainty
05
3.1% year-over-year growth in U.S. merchandise imports in 2023 (value growth rate), indicating expansion in merchant inbound supply volumes
06
1.7% of global cargo is affected by maritime disruptions on average each year (annual average disruption incidence), supporting merchant reliance on resilient ocean logistics
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry Trends in the merchant sector are being shaped by disruption risk and visibility needs, as 31% of organizations reported 2023 material shortages with revenue impact and 78% say they need better supplier risk visibility to meet regulatory requirements.
03 · Category
User Adoption12 stats
01
14% of global respondents reported using blockchain in supply chain for at least one use case in 2023, according to IBM survey results
02
49% of supply chain executives planned to implement or expand IoT in their supply chain in 2023, according to Gartner
03
61% of organizations say they are actively using scenario planning for supply chain risks, according to a 2023 survey by KPMG
04
48% of companies report they use digital twin approaches for supply chain planning in at least one business unit, according to a 2023 survey by IDC
05
56% of organizations use electronic data interchange (EDI) with trading partners, according to a 2022 S&P Global Market Intelligence report
06
67% of logistics companies invested in data/analytics capabilities in 2023, according to DHL’s 2023 trend and insights reporting
07
41% of organizations have implemented inventory forecasting or replenishment optimization as part of their supply chain planning processes, according to Gartner
08
34% of companies use contract lifecycle management and related procurement automation tools to improve supply chain contracting, per Gartner
09
62% of shippers reported that they had increased the number of carriers they use, as part of reducing supply risk (survey-based adoption rate)
10
65% of surveyed logistics decision-makers say they have increased their use of digital tools/technology to manage transportation visibility (survey-based adoption rate)
11
68% of organizations say they track supplier performance using KPIs (share), showing operational controls used in merchant supplier management
12
44% of organizations stated they use automated replenishment/order optimization solutions (adoption share), indicating modernization in merchant procurement-to-warehouse planning
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
User adoption in merchant supply chains is broadening rapidly, with 68% of organizations tracking supplier performance with KPIs and 62% of shippers increasing carrier usage to reduce risk, alongside widespread technology uptake like 65% using digital tools for transportation visibility.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics5 stats
01
The U.S. retail inventories-to-sales ratio was 1.33 in May 2024, per U.S. Census Bureau data
02
4.6% of total U.S. retail inventory was held by specialty retail merchants in 2022, based on U.S. Census Bureau retail trade composition
03
Retailers that use predictive analytics can reduce inventory costs by 20% on average, according to Gartner research summary
04
A 2021 peer-reviewed meta-analysis reported that information sharing in supply chains can improve forecasting accuracy by roughly 10%–30%
05
A 2022 peer-reviewed study found that improving supplier lead-time performance reduced downstream stockouts by 18% on average
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Performance metrics show that better information and planning capabilities are translating into measurable inventory and service gains, with predictive analytics cutting inventory costs by about 20% and supplier lead time improvements lowering downstream stockouts by roughly 18% while information sharing boosts forecasting accuracy by 10% to 30%.
05 · Category
Market Size14 stats
01
The global supply chain management software market is forecast to reach $31.1 billion by 2027, according to Fortune Business Insights
02
The global logistics market is estimated at $8.2 trillion in 2023, according to Statista Industry Report
03
Global 3PL market size was $1.44 trillion in 2022 and is projected to grow to $2.0 trillion by 2027, according to IMARC Group
04
The global warehouse automation market is projected to reach $23.8 billion by 2027, according to MarketsandMarkets
05
Global supply chain analytics software market size was $5.1 billion in 2022, projected to reach $12.4 billion by 2030, according to Grand View Research
06
Global transportation management system (TMS) market size was $4.8 billion in 2023, according to Precedence Research
07
Global visibility and tracking market is forecast to reach $19.7 billion by 2028, according to Allied Market Research
08
Global RFID market size was $12.1 billion in 2022, projected to reach $26.4 billion by 2030, according to Fortune Business Insights
09
Global blockchain technology market in supply chain is forecast to grow from $122 million in 2022 to $3.8 billion by 2031, according to MarketsandMarkets
10
The U.S. wholesale trade sector had $8.6 trillion in sales in 2022, according to U.S. Census Bureau Annual Wholesale Trade Survey
11
The global warehousing market was $685 billion in 2023, per Fortune Business Insights
12
Global procurement outsourcing market size was $496 billion in 2022, projected to reach $1,011 billion by 2030, according to Fortune Business Insights
13
The U.S. logistics services market size was $1.2 trillion in 2023, according to IBISWorld (published market summary numbers)
14
$9.2 billion was the reported market size for smart warehousing (IoT-enabled warehouse technology) in 2023 (market estimate), indicating adoption pull for merchant warehousing
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
Across the market size landscape, merchant supply chain spend is expanding rapidly, with logistics and related technology markets scaling from a $8.2 trillion logistics market in 2023 and a $1.44 trillion global 3PL market in 2022 to projections of $2.0 trillion for 3PL by 2027 and $23.8 billion for warehouse automation by 2027, underscoring strong growth in both services and enabling software and platforms.
06 · Category
Risk & Security1 stats
01
2.4% of U.S. warehouse workers reported workplace injuries related to material handling in 2022 (rate), reflecting operational safety risk in merchant fulfillment networks
Interpretation
Risk & Security Interpretation
In 2022, 2.4% of U.S. warehouse workers reported workplace injuries tied to material handling, underscoring that risk and security remain a tangible operational safety challenge in merchant fulfillment networks.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Daniel Varga. (2026, February 13). Supply Chain In The Merchant Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/supply-chain-in-the-merchant-industry-statistics
MLA
Daniel Varga. "Supply Chain In The Merchant Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/supply-chain-in-the-merchant-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Daniel Varga. 2026. "Supply Chain In The Merchant Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/supply-chain-in-the-merchant-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
45 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+15 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)