The second-biggest U.S. employer of human beings will soon have nearly as many robots speeding goods through its facilities.

The WSJ’s Sebastian Herrera writes that Amazon has deployed more than one million robots in its workplaces: the most it has ever had and near the count of human workers at these facilities.  The e-commerce giant has recently moved to connect robots to its order-fulfillment processes, so the machines can work in tandem with each other and with people. Now, about 75% of Amazon’s global deliveries are assisted in some way by robotics, helping increase productivity and easing problems such as heavy staff turnover at fulfillment centers.

For some of the company’s workers, more robots means less menial, repetitive work and higher-skilled assignments managing the machines. Robots are supplanting other employees, allowing Amazon to slow hiring. About 1.56 million people work at the company, most of them in warehouses. The number of packages Amazon ships per employee each year has risen to about 3,870 from about 175 a decade ago, a WSJ analysis found. A newly created team is working on adding more advanced artificial-intelligence systems into its robotics, with a goal to turn the machines into assistants that can respond to verbal commands.

Home Depot beat out serial logistics dealmaker Brad Jacobs in a bidding war for GMS, with the home-improvement retailer agreeing to acquire the building-products distributor for about $4.3 billion. Including debt, the transaction is valued at about $5.5 billion, the Journal’s Connor Hart reports. Jacobs’s QXO had submitted an unsolicited proposal to buy GMS for about $5 billion. Home Depot will buy GMS through its subsidiary SRS Distribution, which it bought last year for more than $18 billion, including debt. GMS has a network of more than 320 distribution centers offering wallboard, ceilings, steel framing and other construction items. It also runs about 100 tool sales, rental and service centers. Both suitors for the company have been trying to corner a larger share of the market for construction supplies and tools, as the need for more housing and other trends bode well for GMS’s growth, despite tariff and economic uncertainty.

Years of dry weather and the threat of a parasitic fly have reduced the U.S. beef cattle herd to its lowest since the Truman administration, launching prices to record highs as strong demand persists. The WSJ’s Kirk Maltais reports that Department of Agriculture data show the total head of beef cattle in the U.S. at 86.7 million, the smallest number since 1951. The heartland’s grazing land has been exceptionally dry, leading to nutritional deficits and the growth of potentially toxic, drought-tolerant weeds. Lethal infections from the New World screwworm are moving north through Mexico–a leading cattle exporter to the U.S. No cases have been reported in the U.S. but cattle imports from Mexico were suspended in May as a precaution. Consumer appetite for beef hasn’t waned since the pandemic. The retail price for ground beef has now risen to $6.67 a pound, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation, the highest since the group’s survey started in 2013.

• U.S. ranchers are moving to expand their herds from a seven-decade low, Batista Filho said, though it will take years for supplies to recover. (DRGNews.com)

China’s manufacturing activity declined for the third straight month in June. (WSJ)

Japan’s industrial production rose 0.5% in May from the previous month, but the rebound might be temporary. (WSJ)

Inflation in Germany unexpectedly eased in June, with consumer prices up 2% from a year ago, down from May’s 2.1% rise. (WSJ)

The European Union’s top trade official will head to Washington this week for talks as Brussels’ officials race to secure a deal before a key deadline expires on July 9. (WSJ)

Europe’s deal with Trump to boost military spending will help defuse a trans-Atlantic trade war because much of the money will go toward U.S. arms, a top European Union official said. (WSJ)

U.K. antitrust officials are investigating Boeing’s $4.7 billion deal to acquire fuselage maker Spirit AeroSystems. (WSJ)

Stanley Black & Decker named Christopher Nelson to succeed Donald Allan Jr. as chief executive of the tool maker. (WSJ)

AbbVie agreed to acquire Capstan Therapeutics for $2.1 billion in cash. (WSJ)

Private-equity firm KKR agreed to sell its entire 46.39% stake in India-listed J.B. Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals to Torrent Pharmaceuticals for $1.4 billion. (WSJ)

Moderna said its messenger RNA flu-vaccine candidate showed positive results in a late-stage trial. (WSJ)

United Natural Foods, the main distributor to Whole Foods Market, said a cyber attack detected June 5 cut sales volume and raised operational costs. (WSJ)

Chinese carrier Hede Shipping will launch a third expedited China-to-Los Angeles service in mid-July. (Journal of Commerce)

DHL eCommerce named Scott Ashbaugh as its new Americas CEO following the retirement of Lee Spratt. (American Journal of Transportation)

DHL Express Canada was resuming all operations Monday, June 30, after workers ratified a new contract. (Supply Chain Dive)

Indian state-run Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders acquired a controlling 51% stake in Colombo Dockyard–Sri Lanka’s largest shipbuilding facility–from Japan’s Onomichi Dockyard for $52.96 million. (Splash 247)

Privately held Southworth International acquired Germany’s Gruse Maschinenbau, a maker of industrial lifting systems. (Modern Materials Handling)

A Wisconsin & Southern Railroad train derailed near Hartford, Wis., Monday morning, injuring three crew members and causing a fuel leak. (Trains.com)

Ethiopian Airlines launched the first direct air-cargo route between China’s Xinjiang province and Africa. (Xinhua)

The Chamber of Shipping of America named its director of maritime affairs, Sean Kline, as its new CEO. (MarineLog)

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at mark.long@wsj.com. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long, Liz Young and Paul Berger.