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In a world where new disruptions and uncertainties seem to be lurking around every corner, supply chain and procurement professionals had their hands full in March. From the conflict in the Middle East to the shipping backlog in the Strait of Hormuz to ongoing capacity constraints in key sectors, the news throughout much of the month kept teams adjusting and responding in real time.
The war in Iran was top of mind for many companies, with the supply chain impacts being felt both immediately and longer term. In “It’s Not Just Oil: The Iran War Upends Global Supply Chains,” WSJ reported that ports in and around the Indian Ocean filled up with redirected cargo and that “rates to ship goods from Asia to anywhere near the Middle East have rocketed.”
Shipping hubs in Asia were also running low on fuel, it adds, and more than 100 ships were stuck in the Gulf. “Much of the shipping industry’s pain—like that for oil—can be traced back to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the small but globally significant waterway between Iran and Oman,” WSJ adds.
It says container shippers like A.P. Moller-Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd suspended key routes in and out of the Middle East for safety reasons. “The disruption is starting to add to costs and delays for businesses around the world.”
Supply Constraints Continue
In March, chip designer Broadcom announced that it was “seeing supply chain constraints across the technology sector, including capacity limits at its manufacturing partner TSMC, as soaring demand for AI chips strains production,” Reuters reports.
"We are seeing that TSMC is hitting (production capacity) limits," Broadcom’s Natarajan Ramachandran said. "They will be increasing the capacity to 2027, but that has become a bottleneck, or that has kind of choked the supply chain in 2026.”
The Taiwanese firm, the world’s main producer of advanced AI chips, said in January that capacity was tight, as the boom in AI infrastructure buildout has soaked up much of its advanced production lines, the publication adds. The shortages extend beyond semiconductors and are impacting adjacent supply chains like the PCBs used in optical transceivers, whose lead times have stretched from about six weeks to six months.
Freight Markets Pick Up
Trucking activity in the U.S. picked up in February, pushing tonnage levels to the highest point in three years, according to the American Trucking Associations’ March report. Specifically, truck freight tonnage increased 2.6% after gaining 0.7% in January.
Trucking serves as a barometer of the U.S. economy, representing 72.7% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight transportation, including manufactured and retail goods, according to the ATA. Trucks hauled 11.27 billion tons of freight in 2024. Motor carriers collected $906 billion, or 76.9% of total revenue earned by all transport modes.
“February’s robust gain is great to see, but the size of the gain is likely magnified due to lower industry capacity,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello in a press release. “With that said, particularly after a very prolonged freight recession, improving volumes in any manner is welcomed.”
Amazon Does it Again
Just when you thought Amazon’s supply chain and logistics couldn’t get any faster, tighter or on target, the company rolled out new one- and three-hour delivery options in hundreds of cities and towns nationwide. And with that, the e-tailer that often sets the standard for fast, trackable delivery (aka, the “Amazon Effect”) has again raised the bar on what that means for both B2C and B2B buyers.
The company says customers now have access to the one- and three-hour delivery windows in areas like Los Angeles, Chicago, Oklahoma City, Nashville, Houston and Washington, D.C., and smaller cities such as Des Moines, Iowa; Boise, Idaho; and American Fork, Utah. And three-hour delivery is offered in over 2,000 cities and towns.
“Our customers are busier than ever and are looking for new ways to save time while keeping their households running,” Amazon’s Udit Madan says. “We saw an opportunity to use our unique operational expertise and delivery network to help make customers’ lives a little easier while unlocking even more value for Prime members.”
Also last month, the e-tail giant announced that its Zoox self-driving unit will launch a robotaxi service in Austin and Miami later this year. CNBC says Zoox will deploy the toaster-shaped robotaxis for testing in “a small area” of both cities. The company is currently testing its autonomous technology in 10 U.S. cities.
