Market Trends of US Retail 3PL Industry
Growth In E-commerce Driving the Market
The e-commerce sales are expected to continue their surging streak into 2023, which will be driven by consumer shifts toward new and hybrid shopping patterns. In 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce study, the United States e-commerce sales reached more than USD 1.03 trillion, up by 7% when compared to the previous year.
Moreover, big retailers such as Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc. benefitted from this consumer buying pattern. Meanwhile, e-commerce is driving rapid transformation in the retail sector. According to the United States Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce, in Q3 2022, the share of e-commerce in the total retail sales registered 14.8%, up by 3% when compared to Q2 2022. Moreover, in Q3 2022, the Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced retail e-commerce sales in the country. In Q3 2022, the total e-commerce sales in the country amounted to USD 265.9 billion, at a growth rate of 3% from the second quarter of 2022.
Furthermore, in Q3 2022, the fastest-growing category of e-commerce sales is Clothing and general merchandise, including clothing accessories and General merchandise. In addition, the e-commerce sales generated by Clothing and general merchandise were more than USD 42. 4 billion, up by more than 39% compared to Q3 2021. Thus, the growing e-commerce and retail sales create a huge opportunity for third-party logistics service providers in the country.
Increase In Retail Sales Driving the Market
Strong retail sales as COVID-infected Americans return to stores. The lifting of Covid-19 limitations is continuing to fuel record import numbers and contribute to record volumes at America's busiest container ports. According to the National Retail Federation, sales volumes in 2022 are on course to achieve new highs. In addition, in April 2023, the United States retail sales increased, suggesting consumer spending is holding up in the face of economic headwinds including inflation and high borrowing costs.
In addition, in April 2023, the value of retail purchases witnessed a growth rate of more than 0.4% after an upwardly revised 0.7% decrease in March. Meanwhile, in July 2023, retail sales surged by more than 5.4% year on year. This growth was majorly driven by Prime Day sales, which pushed several rivals to compete with Amazon’s summer sale. In addition, customers are largely prioritizing service purchases, and summer sales are also encouraging more spending online and at stores, particularly for back-to-school categories.
Moreover, the United States consumer goods imports also witnessed a growth rate of more than 0.4%, Even though the company the country can manufacture its imports, it gets much better prices when buying from other countries. Thus, the growing retail sales and imports into the country further require a huge network of third-party service providers to deliver the products without any delays.
