Covid-19 lockdowns are casting a longer shadow over China’s economy. Localized lockdowns are proliferating across the country, the WSJ's Joyu Wang and Liyan Qi report, as China wrestles with growing numbers of cases and a deepening impact on regional and international supply chains. Forty-five Chinese cities have implemented full or partial lockdowns this week, and Gavekal Dragonomics says cities subject to full lockdowns accounted for more than 12% of Chinese gross domestic product. Restrictions have hit the industrial city of Kunshan and the logistics and manufacturing hub Guangzhou, and one district in the port city of Shenzhen is under a new lockdown. Gavekal says China’s truck traffic has dropped 40% since mid-March while truck movement around Shanghai is off some 15% from its normal level, according to the South China Morning Post. The paper reported the inland port at Nanjing also shuttered much of its operations after an outbreak.

Natural-gas markets are defying the calendar. U.S. natural-gas futures for May delivery are up 96% so far this year, the WSJ’s Julia-Ambra Verlaine reports, and have been rising lately in a break from season trends as strong overseas demand pressures inventories. Demand for natural gas usually wanes in the spring and prices slide as temperatures pick up. But Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has knocked energy markets off balance and roiled trading patterns for a range of commodities, including gas, coal and crude. Europe’s growing demand to replace Russian deliveries is pushing prices up to the highest levels since 2008 and depleting stockpiles as ships fill up for trans-Atlantic crossings. Natural-gas stockpiles ticked up over the past week but remain some 18% below the five-year average for this time of year. Prices could go still higher this summer as energy demand for cooling rises, if seasonal patterns return.

Here are recent developments following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine:

The flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet sank in a potentially crucial development in marine operations behind Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. (WSJ)

Global businesses are tallying up tens of billions in losses from their Russian operations amid asset sales, shutdowns and sanctions. (WSJ)

President Vladimir Putin acknowledged Western sanctions have stymied Russia’s energy industry and that it will need to focus oil and gas sales on Asia. (WSJ)

French beauty-products maker L'Occitane will keep its stores in Russia open. (WSJ)

Maritime classification society Bureau Veritas will downsize its Russian ocean business. (Lloyd’s List)

For the latest updates from Russia and Ukraine, click here

Flooding that has killed more than 300 people in South Africa is triggering disruption in the continent's regional supply chains. The flooding has ravaged the country’s biggest port, the WSJ’s Aaisha Dadi Patel reports, backing up trucks, forcing container vessels to reroute and derailing a gateway for nearby landlocked nations like Botswana and Zimbabwe. The toll on infrastructure has been significant. A key road leading to the Port of Durban was heavily damaged and truck traffic jams more than six miles long have stretched out since then toward Johannesburg, with some drivers reporting looting along the way. Some of the port’s waterside operations resumed Wednesday after all activity across its terminals was suspended Monday night. The impact on broader global supply chains will likely be limited, but the natural disaster will reverberate across supply chains across southern Africa and the heavy damage means recovery will take time.

U.S. retail sales rose 0.5% in March on increased spending on gasoline amid rising prices. (WSJ)

New applications for U.S. unemployment benefits remain near historical lows. (WSJ)

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy is pledging to improve worker safety at the company’s warehouses. (WSJ)

A new White House report says supply-chain vulnerabilities exposed during the pandemic will persist after the pandemic ends. (New York Times)

Japan’s Envision AESC will spend $2 billion to build a second electric-vehicle battery plant in the U.S. (Nikkei Asia)

Battery maker Panasonic will spend $4.8 billion to diversify its business away from Tesla and into areas including supply-chain software. (Financial Times)

A natural-gas shortage in Bangladesh is disrupting production and deliveries at the country’s extensive garment factories. (Sourcing Journal)

Japan’s biggest steelmakers are raising prices and warning of more increases to come. (Japan Times)

Amazon is adding a 5% surcharge for third-party sellers using its fulfillment services to cover fuel and inflation costs. (Supply Chain Dive)

California authorities are studying development of inland ports through public-private partnerships to relieve pressure on seaports. (Journal of Commerce)

Supply-chain technology provider Trimble is selling four infrastructure construction units to private-equity firm the Jordan Co. (DC Velocity)

Industrial parts supplier Fastenal’s first-quarter sales jumped 20.3% over last year. (Modern Distribution Management)

A former rail engineer at the Port of Los Angeles was sentenced to three years in jail for intentionally derailing a train near a hospital ship. (KNBC)

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

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