Recovery efforts were underway across southwest Florida as Ian was expected to regain hurricane strength over the Atlantic before making landfall again in South Carolina today. The storm that hit Florida as a Category 4 hurricane has caused damage state officials say will take years to recover from. The WSJ’s Alyssa Lukpat, Elizabeth Findell and Dan Frosch report it has caused widespread transportation disruptions, including more than 2,000 flight cancellations and shutdowns of major seaports. Port Tampa Bay reopened without major damage while the Jacksonville port remained closed on Thursday under the threat of gale-force winds and storm surges. South Carolina’s Port of Charleston, which is close to the storm’s projected path, has sent all ships out to sea and says its marine terminals will be closed Friday but that operations should resume on Saturday.

Bed Bath & Beyond is catching up on past due payments to suppliers. Now the troubled home-goods seller just needs customers to start spending again. The retailer’s quarterly sales tumbled 28% and the net loss jumped to $366 million from $73 million last year, the WSJ’s Suzanne Kapner reports. Still, the company’s cash holdings expanded from the previous quarter, providing some breathing room as it seeks to replenish inventory and get payments to Bed Bath & Beyond’s anxious suppliers. The company said it made progress in the recent quarter in clearing out excess private-label goods and adding national brands. It also has been cutting costs by closing stores and eliminating corporate and supply-chain staff. Making the overdue payments to suppliers is critical to ensuring the retailer has enough goods to sell for the coming holiday season. Its accounts payable declined 21% compared with a year ago.

• Nike’s inventories jumped 44% in the latest quarter and higher discounts and freight costs squeezed the apparel company’s profit margins. (WSJ)
• Retailer H&M is undertaking a $177 million cost-cutting effort to cope with rising raw materials and freight expenses. (Financial Times)

Logistics technology startups are getting attention, and financial backing, from some tech sector heavyweights. Supply-chain software business Noodle Analytics just raised $25 million from investors including the venture-capital arms of aerospace and industrial conglomerate Honeywell International and business-software company ServiceNow. The WSJ’s Marc Vartabedian reports the new financing highlights the growing interest corporations have in startups they think can help streamline their operations since the pandemic began disrupting supply chains. Honeywell says it was drawn to Noodle.ai’s potential to help the 116-year-old company improve how it manages its assets and eliminate waste. San Francisco-based Noodle.ai says its artificial intelligence draws on data to recommend ways to speed up shipments and to navigate supply-chain snarls. Venture investment in supply-chain startups has receded this year, with financial backing down some 39% in the second quarter and the deals down 35% from a year ago.

New unemployment claims in the U.S. fell to their lowest level in five months. (WSJ)

The U.S. imposed sanctions on firms in China and other nations it accuses of helping Iran evade bans on its oil and petrochemical exports. (WSJ)

Apple procurement executive Tony Blevins is leaving the company after making crude remarks on a TikTok video. (WSJ)

CarMax’s sales growth slowed sharply as demand for used cars waned. (WSJ)

Vietnam’s economy expanded 13.7% in the past quarter on strong growth in exports. (Reuters)

Low water levels on the drought-hit Mississippi River present a new challenge to farmers in moving goods. (Reuters)

Japan struck a deal with Malaysia’s Petronas to supply liquefied natural gas to fill winter reserves. (Nikkei Asia)

Ford will spend $700 million to expand its F-series pickup truck production at its Louisville, Ky., plant. (Industry Week)

Clarksons Research says a decline in the container shipping market accelerated in September. (ShippingWatch)

Long-foundering dry-bulk shipping demand has gained steam in September. (TradeWinds)

Orient Overseas Container Line completed a ship voyage with marine biofuel supplied by Chevron. (Port Technology)

Air cargo charter demand has softened over the past month as airfreight markets have weakened. (The Loadstar)

Amazon opened its first distribution center in Turkey. (Daily Sabah)

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.