Autonomous truck companies are looking for more cash as they appear to get closer to commercial-scale production. Silicon Valley startup Plus is undertaking a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company that would bring the five-year-old company up to $500 million in new backing, the WSJ Logistics Report’s Jennifer Smith writes. The SPAC deal follows a $1.35 billion initial public offering last month by rival manufacturer TuSimple, signaling that early investors have their eyes on revenue opportunities as the technology behind self-driving trucks looks more road-worthy. Plus says it has a deal to provide 1,000 trucks with its technology to an unnamed U.S. fleet, and is working with several U.S. shipping companies and fleet operators. Plus, TuSimple and others are racing to get autonomous technology into commercial operations in the next couple of years, and developing production lines may become as important as development of the technology itself.

Friction between food suppliers and retailers are rising as strains over costs and distribution grow. Big buyers including Walmart and Sysco are starting to fine suppliers over late deliveries or incomplete orders, as tight labor conditions, supply constraints and higher freight costs course through distribution channels. The WSJ’s Jesse Newman, Jaewon Kang and Annie Gasparro report that the penalties revive programs that were suspended during the pandemic, when sudden upheaval in consumer buying patterns triggered widespread supply shortages. Retailers say they’re trying to keep shelves stocked in a rebounding U.S. economy. But suppliers like Pillsbury owner Hometown Food say their supply chains are still challenged by soaring raw materials costs and tight transportation capacity. The higher costs are filtering through to consumers, with prices rising for goods ranging from apples to appliances as more companies conclude that their customers are willing to pay more.

The “dead space” in coronavirus vaccine vials is becoming a problem in supply chains for the doses. Officials say they aren’t receiving enough special syringes needed to extract every last dose of Covid-19 shots from vials, the WSJ’s Austen Hufford and Jared S. Hopkins report, the latest sign of how imbalances in vaccine supply chains are undercutting efficient distribution of the doses. The rapid development and rollout of the vaccines has left gaps in a range of areas, and now administrators are running short of the special syringes needed to extract the last drops of doses and minimize waste. That has left health officials discarding doses when they have to turn to standard syringes rather than what’s known as the “low-dead-space” devices. The special syringes were in limited supply before the pandemic, but the U.S. didn’t support increased production last year because it wasn’t clear they would be needed.

Hiring in the U.S. unexpectedly slowed in April, and employment in the courier sector contracted by 77,499 jobs. (WSJ)

Copper prices climbed to break decade-old records on growing bets on an industrial rebound. (WSJ)

China’s exports jumped 32.3% in April from last year’s pandemic-hit level while imports soared 43.1%. (WSJ)

A cyberattack forced the shutdown of the main pipeline carrying gasoline and diesel fuel to the U.S. East Coast. (WSJ)

Singapore-based delivery and ride-hailing app Grab Holdings is going public through a merger with a blank-check company. (WSJ)

Honda suspended auto production in India due to the surging Covid-19 outbreak. (Nikkei Asia)

Amazon is exercising warrants to buy more shares in Air Transport Services Group, making it the cargo airline’s largest shareholder. (The Loadstar)

A shareholder advisory group is criticizing XPO Logistics for paying executive bonuses after taking pandemic relief funds in the U.K. (The Guardian)

U.S. securities regulators subpoenaed electric-truck startup Nikola over its plans to raise more capital from investors. (Financial Times)

Canadian authorities ordered rail equipment maker National Steel Car to remain closed following a Covid-19 outbreak among workers. (CBC)

Rates for the largest dry-bulk ships are retreating from record highs on fears that China may take a tougher stance on Australian commodity imports. (Lloyd’s List)

Three companies were named the finalists in bidding for the Shipping Corporation of India. (Splash 247)

South Korea’s HMM is finalizing the purchase of 12 mid-sized container ships in a deal worth $1.4 billion. (TradeWinds)

Orders for new ships at Chinese shipyards by tonnage more than tripled in the first quarter from the year before. (Seatrade Maritime)

APM Terminals is taking part in studies for a potential new container terminal in Louisiana to handle megaships. (Journal of Commerce)

Denmark-based Celsius Shipping is offloading all 18 of its dry-bulk vessels. (ShippingWatch)

Japan Airlines quadrupled its operating loss in the quarter ending March 31 to $953.9 million. (Reuters)

First-quarter revenue at the cargo arm of British Airways owner IAG rose 50% to $426 million. (Air Cargo News)

Developer WPT Industrial Real Estate is building a 500,000-square-foot warehouse near Minneapolis on a speculative basis. (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)

Paul Page is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Write to him at paul.page@wsj.com.

Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team: @PaulPage, @jensmithWSJ, @CostasParis. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.