Demand for new factories in the U.S. is helping drive growth in construction spending that is cascading across industrial supply chains. The expansion is reaching manufacturers of construction equipment, trucks and other industrial goods, the WSJ’s Bob Tita reports, and providing a boost to the U.S. economy despite rising interest rates and slowdowns in other sectors. The adjusted 0.3% rate of growth in construction spending in March included a 4.6% gain in manufacturing-related construction. A backlog of orders and higher demand from new factories are boosting manufacturing companies like Caterpillar, which makes construction equipment, and driving demand for materials like steel and the trucks needed to transport big industrial shipments. Production of commercial trucks is accelerating after parts shortages during the pandemic limited output. Kenworth and Peterbilt maker Paccar delivered 51,100 trucks during the first quarter, 19% more than last year, and projects similar deliveries this quarter.

• Chinese construction equipment maker Sany Heavy Industry plans to ramp up foreign sales in competition with companies including Caterpillar and Komatsu. (Nikkei Asia) 

Norfolk Southern faces a key test of investor sentiment this week as executives meet with shareholders for the first time since a toxic train derailment in Ohio. The company’s annual investor meeting comes as Norfolk Southern has lost about $10 billion in market value since the Feb. 3 accident, while some investors are signaling their discontent with management. The WSJ’s Esther Fung reports that New York state Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, who oversees the state’s pension system, said the retirement fund will vote against all 13 of Norfolk Southern’s board nominees. Another retirement fund is suing the railroad, charging it made misleading statements about the safety of its operations. The freight railroad has said the price tag for the cleanup and related costs could approach $400 million. The costs could reach executives, with the New York fund saying it is voting against approving executive compensation.

• BNSF Railway’s first-quarter earnings fell 8.8% as consumer products volume declined 16.4%. (Trains)

The international sanctions regime connected to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine may get much more complicated. The European Union is considering sanctioning eight Chinese companies over ties with Russia, the WSJ’s Laurence Norman reports, with the bloc looking to target firms it believes have provided Moscow electronic items that can be used for military purposes. Several of the companies, including China-based 3HC Semiconductors, make microchips, and six of the firms are based in Hong Kong. If all 27 EU member countries approve, the action would mark another step by Brussels toward U.S. extraterritorial sanctions. That is a U.S. policy of banning foreign companies from doing U.S.-sanctioned trade with a country, regardless of whether the firm’s host country also applies those measures. The plan would add far greater complexity to trade compliance oversight, especially if it reaches across more companies and industrial sectors.

• Pro-Russian separatist authorities have started shipping grain from the occupied Port of Mariupol. (TradeWinds)

China’s export growth slowed to 8.5% in April from last year and shrank 6.4% from March. (WSJ)

Germany’s industrial production contracted a more-than-expected 3.4% in March, driven by declining auto production. (MarketWatch)

U.S. wholesale inventories were flat for the second straight month in March as sales fell 2.1%. (MarketWatch)

Tyson Foods swung to its first quarterly loss since 2009 and cut its sales forecast for the year. (WSJ)

Discount home-goods retailer Christmas Tree Shops entered bankruptcy protection with a plan to emerge quickly with its store base mostly intact. (WSJ)

Alibaba's Cainiao logistics arm aims to raise up to $2 billion through an initial public offering in Hong Kong likely early next year. (Reuters)

Washington state added job protections for warehouse workers that include restrictions against productivity quotas. (Supply Chain Quarterly)

JLL says the warehouse vacancy rate in the Denver region rose for the fourth straight quarter to 7.8%. (Sourcing Journal)

Emirates Skycargo added two 747-400 freighters as part of a plan to double capacity over the next 10 years. (The National)

Cargo revenue at Air France-KLM plunged 26.1% in the first quarter from last year. (Air Cargo News)

Car carrier Wallenius Wilhelmsen says Australia’s guards against invasive stinkbugs​ are slowing port operations there. (Maritime Executive)

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.