Walmart, already struggling to woo shoppers constrained by higher taxes, is "getting worse" at keeping shelves stocked, the retailer's U.S. chief told executives, according to minutes of an officers' meeting obtained by Bloomberg News.

Global logistics giant Kuehne + Nagel have announced the restructuring of their European operations in the first step of a "comprehensive programme for increases in efficiency". In an online statement released on their website, KN explained it will optimize its regional structure beginning July 2013, beginning by merging the current organisational units of central Europe, northwest Europe and southwest Europe into one central region.

In the EU, the recent commitment to opening up both the shipping and road haulage industries to cleaner power sources, has been reinforced by one of the world's premier container and general shipping ports with the announcement that the Port of Rotterdam is stepping up its sustainable shipping policy by rewarding the operators of liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers with a discount on port charges.

Three of South Africa's biggest supermarket chains have moved to reassure the public that their meats are safe after news that top local researchers had found "fraudulent meat products" across the country.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg announced £213m of joint Government and industry investment to strengthen UK advanced manufacturing supply chains "” creating over 11,000 new jobs and safeguarding another 5,000.

Trans-O-Flex has opened a new logistics centre near Frankfurt Airport in central Germany to provide cross-border distribution for the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries.

Representatives from the Belarusian and Italian Commission on International Road Transport met in Rome where an agreement was reached to increase bilateral quotas on road haulage in 2013 and 2014. The parties also discussed the subject of intermodal transport and the prospect of increased use of bilateral communication, and increasing the flow of freight between Europe and Asia.

There are several overarching themes driving the push for more automation inside the four walls. Some relate to changing demographics in the labor force, others to how consumers are shopping today, and let's not overlook the constant striving for more efficiency, productivity and cost reduction.

The total capacity of Iranian ports has increased by 80 million tons during the past eight years, reaching 184 million tons, IRNA quoted Iranian roads and urban development Minister Ali Nikzad as saying.

The latest communication from the Global Air Cargo Advisory Group (GACAG), a body which packs in all the heavy hitters involved in the supply chain, from forwarding agents to airlines, makes very plain the views of the air cargo industry regarding the recently stalled Doha Round of trade negotiations held under the auspices of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and specifically designed to lower trade barriers and simplify processes, particularly to allow two way market access to developing countries.