The Biden administration’s decision to maintain tariffs on Chinese apparel imports highlights a rift in the textile sector. American apparel manufacturers say the levies on goods from China are a lifeline for their operations, which they say have been hammered over the past two decades from low-price competition by Chinese manufacturers. The WSJ Logistics Report’s Liz Young writes that companies including New York-based Ferrara Manufacturing and South Carolina’s Greenwood Mills say they have scaled back and reconfigured their operations, but that Chinese suppliers have continually undercut their prices. The share of U.S. textile and apparel imports from China has declined in recent years, but American employment in the sector has fallen even more sharply as retailers and big brands have turned to offshore suppliers. Jay Self of Greenwood Mills, a onetime Levi Strauss supplier, wants to see tariffs doubled and barriers raised against goods produced by forced labor.

• Germany supports changes in European Union import taxes which could end an exemption for cheap parcels that has helped online retailers Shein and Temu. (Reuters)

The trade battle between the U.S. and China over chip production is being fueled by subsidies. China raised about $48 billion in its third installment of a national semiconductor fund, the WSJ’s Liza Lin reports, as it aims to increase chip-making capabilities in the face of an escalating technology competition with the U.S. This latest financing round is the largest for the state-owned fund, which directs state support to build up the country’s semiconductor supply chain. Governments across the world are pouring billions of dollars into nurturing domestic semiconductor industries after the pandemic laid bare supply-chain constraints, spending that will shift the flow of goods in the sector that is a foundation for electronics supply chains. The U.S. earmarked more than $50 billion to expand chip manufacturing. South Korea, home to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, just announced a $19 billion tax-incentive to bolster its semiconductor sector.

• China in a rare exchange with the leaders of Japan and South Korea sought to drive a wedge on trade between the U.S. and its Asian allies. (WSJ)
• Tesla told suppliers to start building components outside of both China and Taiwan by as early as next year. (Nikkei Asia)

Pharmaceutical supply chains are fattening up on anti-obesity drugs. The latest big boost is coming from Eli Lilly, which plans to spend $5.3 billion to increase manufacturing capacity for its hot-selling anti-obesity drug Zepbound and its cousin diabetes drug Mounjaro. The WSJ’s Peter Loftus reports the investment will significantly expand a production site under construction in Lebanon, Ind., bringing overall spending there to $9 billion. Lilly and Novo Nordisk, the maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, have been unable to keep up with demand and the companies have committed billions of dollars to increasing manufacturing capacity. It’s a sign of how rapid developments in healthcare are pushing companies to stand up new supply chains, from sourcing to manufacturing and distribution. Driven by demographics in part as populations in Western nations get older, the logistics networks that support the sector can expect the demand for nimble new supply chains to grow.

• German medical device maker Gerresheimer is spending $180 million to expand production capacity at its factory outside Atlanta. (MarketWatch) 

The union representing Canadian border agents said its members voted to strike as soon as next month. (WSJ)

Orders for durable goods in the U.S. rose in April for the third straight month. (MarketWatch)

A monthly gauge of U.S. consumer sentiment fell to its lowest level in six months in May. (MarketWatch)

New car registrations in Europe, reflecting sales, rose about 14% in April. (WSJ)

U.S. officials forecast a record-breaking Atlantic hurricane season. (WSJ)

The United Auto Workers filed objections to a failed unionization vote at an Alabama Mercedes-Benz plant. (WSJ)

Combined claims by shippers and forwarders at the Federal Maritime Commission for alleged wrongful charges now exceed $67 million. (The Loadstar)

A rash of container thefts that began at Southern California ports is spreading to inland intermodal operations. (Journal of Commerce)

Car carrier Wallenius Wilhelmsen is adding four vessels to its growing orderbook. (ShippingWatch)

S&P Global Ratings lowered its credit rating for C.H. Robinson Worldwide, citing the freight broker’s continued high debt level during a prolonged demand downturn. (Dow Jones Newswires)

The owner of Royal Mail returned to profit as a deadline approaches for the operator’s largest shareholder to make a takeover bid. (Financial Times)

European Union authorities fined snack-foods maker Mondelez International about $366 million for violating rules on cross-border distribution. (Dow Jones Newswires)

U.K. same-day courier Speedy Express is expanding into the U.S. (Logistics Manager)

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 X at @WSJLogistics.