Competition for workers is heating up and reaching deeper into the logistics sector. Amazon’s announcement that it is hiring 75,000 more workers while raising pay and offering $1,000 signing bonuses will add new urgency, and likely new expenses, to recruiting for transport and logistics workers. The WSJ’s Sebastian Herrera reports the e-commerce giant is offering average pay of $17 an hour for the new posts, up from Amazon’s typical starting wage of $15 an hour. That comes as companies including McDonald’s and Chipotle are raising wages, Walmart is stepping up efforts to retain workers and trucking companies are boosting pay to bring in drivers. XPO Logistics is joining the hiring rush with plans to add 4,000 workers on what it says is growing demand from its e-commerce customers. The companies are trying to take advantage of a resurgent U.S. economy and that will mean getting enough workers in place.

The U.S. automotive sector is seeing the harsh results of a gap between demand and supply. Americans are shopping for cars in record numbers but the WSJ’s Mike Colias, Ben Foldy and Nora Naughton report that inventories at dealer lots are thinning out as the world’s computer-chip shortage takes a toll on auto production. Wards Intelligence says dealers had fewer than 2 million vehicles on the ground or en route at the end of April, roughly half the normal number and the lowest level in more than three decades. Dealers are responding by raising prices, and car makers are building some models without needed semiconductors and parking them until the chips start flowing again. Customers and dealers are growing more frustrated, however, as the shortfall threatens to undermine a market rebound. Little relief is on the way: Rail transports of motor vehicles have tumbled nearly 20% since January. 

Alibaba Group Holding’s first quarterly loss since going public had little to do with diminishing e-commerce demand. The Chinese online retailer swung to a $836 million loss after being hit by a record antitrust fine, and the WSJ’s Stephanie Yang and Jing Yang report Alibaba faces new financial challenges as it seeks to reshape its business to satisfy regulators while it wards off growing competition. CEO Daniel Zhang says any profits from this fiscal year that surpass last year would go toward improving user growth and engagement, merchant support, infrastructure and logistics. Sales are still strong, but the projected 30% growth this year is well behind last year’s expansion. Alibaba is trying to do more to court merchants, but competition could be the biggest cloud over the company. Upstarts like five-year-old Pinduoduo are offering new services to consumers while longstanding rival JD.com bulks up its logistics capabilities.

Initial weekly jobless claims in the U.S. declined to a new pandemic low. (WSJ)

Colonial Pipeline resumed deliveries after restoring fuel flows and expected to resume service throughout its entire system Thursday. (WSJ)

Canadian National is expected to sweeten its takeover bid for Kansas City Southern, as it seeks to outflank rival Canadian Pacific. (WSJ)

U.S. regulators approved Boeing’s fixes for an electrical problem that has grounded more than 100 737 MAX jets. (WSJ)

Food-delivery company DoorDash’s first quarter revenue tripled to $1.08 billion. (WSJ)

Daimler’s finance chief is divvying up the car maker’s finanical operations ahead of the spinoff of the trucks business. (WSJ)

Hundreds of barges were backed up on the Mississippi River after the U.S. Coast Guard halted vessel traffic because a crucial bridge developed a large crack. (CNN)

An investigation suggests seven suppliers to Apple are linked to alleged forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. (The Information)

The logistics arm of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com is seeking to raise $3.4 billion to $3.9 billion in an initial public offering in Hong Kong. (South China Morning Post) 

Digital finance pioneer PayPay acquired reverse logistics specialist Happy Returns. (DC Velocity)

Electric-vehicle startup Lion Electric will build a factory in Joliet, Ill., to scale up bus production. (FleetOwner)

FedEx is raising its international peak surcharges and warning European customers of delivery delays to the U.S. (Lloyd’s Loading List)

Maersk Line is seeking a sustainable business model for its ocean business even as the carrier focuses on fast-growing logistics services. (Lloyd’s List)

South Korean shipbuilders raised prices for very large crude carriers by 15% and pushed delivery slots to 2024. (TradeWinds)

Norfolk Southern issued $500 million in bonds to fund its sustainable business initiatives. (Railway Age)

C.H. Robinson Worldwide acquired European perishables goods transporter Combinex Holding. (Fruitnet)

German last-mile fulfillment firm ParcelLab raised $112 million in a Series C funding round led by Insight Partners. (TechCrunch)

Trucking companies are embracing memes and other social media tools to recruit drivers. (Transport Dive)

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

Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team: @PaulPage, @jensmithWSJ, @CostasParis. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.