Guest: Matt Lekstutis of Efficio on China and world trade; The upbeat forklift market; Automation comes to the high seas

Our guest on this week's episode is Matt Lekstutis, director at Efficio, a supply chain and consulting firm. Two weeks ago, President Trump had an historic meeting with China’s President Xi. It was a highly anticipated gathering, as there was a lot to talk about, including the war against Iran and the ongoing oil constraints. Our guest this week talks with DC Velocity Group Editorial Director David Maloney to unwrap what took place and to discuss international trade and world-wide threats to our supply chains. Senior Editor Victoria Kickham reports that buyers of forklifts and pallet-handling equipment are upbeat in 2026, with many expecting to increase capital expenditures on those items this year as compared to last year. This information is based on a recent Voice of Market report from London-based research firm Interact Analysis. The researchers surveyed decision-makers involved in the use, selection, and purchase of automation technologies for their facilities globally.We’ve been writing for years about autonomous vehicles, first with AGVs and AMRs in warehouses, there are self-driving forklifts, outdoor delivery robots on sidewalks, increasingly self-driving cars, a small but growing number of self-driving trucks, and some flying drones both indoors and out. But a story that caught the eye of Senior News Editor Ben Ames this week was about autonomous commercial ships.Articles and resources mentioned in this episode:OfficioReport: Market sentiment for forklift and pallet handling tech improvesIMO launches safety code to regulate autonomous shipsVisit DC VelocityVisit Supply Chain XchangeSend feedback about this podcast to [email protected] podcast episode is sponsored by: ID Label