Spot container shipping rates on trans-Pacific lanes are turning sharply upward, at least for the moment. Industry measures show rate increases that container lines have been seeking this summer are finally taking hold on Asia-to-U.S. trade, with Xeneta estimating that prices have surged 61% over the past six weeks. The WSJ Logistics Report’s Paul Berger writes that U.S. importers have generally absorbed the price increases without much drama, however, because the rates still are far below the steep highs that roiled the market over the previous two years. Rates have been diving this year, and experts say the gains carriers have made in recent weeks will likely be short-lived because more new capacity is due to swamp container markets. For now, carriers and shippers alike are feeling some urgency as the peak shipping season progresses with few signs that consumer demand will push more goods toward ocean supply chains.

• Hapag-Lloyd CEO Rolf Habben Jansen says a sudden downturn in trans-Atlantic container rates is dragging operations to loss-making levels. (Journal of Commerce)
• Container line Zim is “rationalizing” capacity on a soft demand forecast after losing $213 million in the second quarter. (Lloyd’s List)

The race to control burgeoning electric-vehicle supply chains is taking an unlikely turn through Africa. Pressure to create battery supply chains is prompting Western miners to process metals in countries such as Tanzania, Mauritius and South Africa, the WSJ’s Alexandra Wexler reports, as they set up facilities in areas they’ve long considered too risky because of poor infrastructure, limited skilled labor and, in some places, a reputation for government corruption. China dominates both the production and processing of critical minerals that are key to the energy transition. Now, some Western companies and investors are establishing processing plants in Africa so they can refine raw materials locally and export them to Europe and the U.S. Investments such as plans by BHP to build a nickel-refining plant in Tanzania also meet demands from African governments that want more local processing of metals and minerals extracted from their soil.

• The market value of Vietnamese electric car maker VinFast pushed ahead of General Motors and Ford in its debut on Wall Street. (WSJ)

Logistics companies are turning to advances in computer networking to run power-hungry artificial-intelligence workloads more efficiently. Technology chiefs at DHL Supply Chain and trucker Estes Express Lines say the improving tools allow them to run AI programs outside data centers and closer to where applications are being put into operations. The WSJ’s Angus Loten reports that AI requires massive amounts of computing power, which is typically provided in large data centers owned or operated by cloud vendors. Corporate technology chiefs say emerging systems designed to distribute heavy workloads across networks of linked computers could lower cloud costs while helping the AI programs run rapidly and efficiently. DHL is using a decentralized cloud system to run AI-powered applications behind warehouse robots. Such tools are becoming more important to logistics companies as technology demanding strong power supplies plays a bigger role in their sprawling and far-flung operations.

China’s offshore yuan is sinking toward a record low. (WSJ)

U.S. industrial production jumped 1% in July and capacity utilization increased. (MarketWatch)

The U.K.’s headline consumer rate of inflation fell in July, although key components of prices remained hot. (WSJ)

The White House is planning new tariffs on can-making metal  imported from China, Germany and Canada. (WSJ)

Target’s same-store sales fell 5.4% last quarter while rival TJX reported a 6% gain from a year ago. (WSJ)

Intel scrapped its more-than-$5 billion offer to buy Israel’s Tower Semiconductor after Chinese regulators failed to approve the deal. (WSJ)

Discount grocer Aldi is buying about 400 Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket locations across the Southeastern U.S. (WSJ)

Second-quarter profit at Chinese e-commerce merchant JD.com jumped 50% to $906 million on a 30% gain in net revenue. (WSJ)

A containership stranded in Odesa for nearly 18 months left the Ukrainian port despite concerns Russia could target vessels in the Black Sea. (BBC)

H&M is investigating alleged labor abuse at Myanmar garment factories that supply the world's second-largest fashion retailer. (Reuters)

A shift in automotive demand in India to higher-quality vehicles may prompt car makers to build more domestic models that can also be exported. (Nikkei Asia)

Taiwan’s Evergreen Marine is taking a 20% stake in the Port of Rotterdam’s Euromax container terminal. (The Loadstar)

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration will allow more air cargo shippers to take part in a program aimed at securing airborne supply chains. (Air Cargo News)

Canadian freight airline Cargojet is cutting costs and reining back its network after second-quarter revenue fell 15%. (Air Cargo Next)

German freight forwarder Dachser says it is looking for more acquisition targets in the ocean sector. (ShippingWatch)

DHL Supply Chain is building a 755,000-square-foot distribution center in central Ohio. (Business Journals)

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.