Big retailers are winding down inventory destocking efforts that have drained distribution networks and crashed freight carrier earnings. Walmart and Target both said in recent days that their inventories are in good shape, the WSJ Logistics Report writes, an improvement following a year that has seen merchants pull back orders as they coped with overstuffed warehouses and foundering consumer demand. Target executives say overstocking is “in the rearview mirror” and that the retailer is now looking forward to getting fresh merchandise into stores for the fall and the holidays. That would be a relief for freight carriers that have been waiting for a restocking cycle to boost depressed cargo volumes. Some operators say customers are telling them that destocking is essentially done, although new shipments aren’t yet flowing toward distribution centers. The scale of restocking also remains a question: Target says its effort will focus on “inventory efficiency.”

• Foot Locker says sales have slowed and that it will increase discounts to boost demand and clear inventory. (WSJ)
• Troubled retailers that stayed alive thanks to heady consumer spending during the pandemic are filing for bankruptcy at the highest rate since 2020. (WSJ)

U.S. seaports are either having a terrible year or something of a recovery, depending on how you look at the numbers. Ports from Los Angeles to New York-New Jersey are reporting double-digit declines in container import volumes compared to last year, yet inbound trade is growing at steady month-to-month rates at many gateways. The WSJ Logistics Report’s Paul Berger writes that the gap is the result of the enormous surge in box imports early in 2022, when retailers were rushing to get goods around supply-chain bottlenecks and into U.S. domestic distribution networks. It’s a sign of the roller-coaster that shipping volumes have been riding since the Covid-19 pandemic, and how traditional patterns of supply and demand have been upended. That has complicated forecasting from seaport operations to retailer procurement. Transport experts say the near-term patterns also suggest trade volumes are normalizing after three tumultuous years.

Car dealer lots across the U.S. are displaying signs of strengthening automotive supply chains. Buyers are finding a bigger selection of models to choose from this spring selling season, the WSJ’s Ryan Felton reports, in a turnaround from the scarce inventory that left sales volumes faltering and consumers waiting months for deliveries of some popular models. Overall, dealership inventories are up about 50% from last year, but Wards Intelligence says that is only about half the stock available two years before. Still, the replenished inventory is shaping up as a test for car companies, many of which would like to keep availability permanently constrained to maintain margins. For now, pent-up demand has sales growing and buyers still paying historically high prices. The Association of American Railroads says automotive shipments on North American railroads reached the highest level in the first four months of the year since 2019.

• Panasonic plans more than $5 billion in capital spending this fiscal year, more than half of it to increase electric-vehicle battery output. (Nikkei Asia)
• Vietnamese car maker Vinfast completed its first delivery of electric SUVs to Canada. (Automotive Logistics)

Copper prices have fallen to a five-month low over concerns about China’s sputtering recovery. (WSJ)

China banned Micron Technology as a supplier to the country’s major firms, saying the U.S. chip maker presents a national security threat. (WSJ)

Deere raised its annual outlook on easing supply-chain pressures and a strong U.S. farm economy. (WSJ)

A federal judge ruled a passenger-ticketing alliance between American Airlines and Jetblue is anticompetitive. (WSJ)

Amazon’s sprawling logistics network has made the company vulnerable to labor actions at distribution chokepoints. (New York Times)

The drought-struck Panama Canal is adding more restrictions on ships because of low water levels. (gCaptain)

John Fredriksen-owned Seatankers is buying up to eight mid-size bulk ships from China’s Qingdao Shipyard. (Splash 247)

China Merchants is ordering two new liquefied natural gas carriers and two mid-sized crude tankers. (Lloyd’s List)

Canadian passenger airline Westjet reached a tentative contract agreement with pilots just ahead of a strike deadline. (Canadian Press)

FedEx Express is expanding its use of robotic arms in its parcel sorting operations at its Memphis, Tenn., hub. (Supply Chain Dive)

Amazon opened a 1 million-square-foot distribution center in Canton, Ohio. (Canton Repository)

Owners of an office complex in Santa Ana, Calif., are demolishing the recently-renovated buildings and building an eight-acre logistics center. (Orange County Register)

Indian logistics provider Delhivery is investing in e-commerce software startup Vinculum. (Economic Times)

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

Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team: @PaulPage, @bylizyoung and @pdberger. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.