{"resources": [{"current_count": 722, "title": "Industry Update: Truck Transportation Summer 2024", "id": 6176, "content_body": "For-hire carriers continue to grapple with the dual challenges of excess capacity and a sideways freight environment. The over-capacity condition continues to move in a healthy direction, with private fleet expansion long in the tooth and the weakest for-hire carriers continuing to leave the market. That said, the rebalancing process has been drawn out longer than prior cycles. Multi-year low freight rates and elevated operating expenses have been partially offset by the cushion of excess profits generated during the post-COVID freight boom and benign fuel prices over the past year. While Darwin continues to work on the capacity issue, a durable improvement in the macro landscape, the freight cycle, and eventually carrier profits will hinge on the pace of the well-telegraphed Fed easing cycle. In that regard, BMO economists have recently raised their forecast for the remainder of this year to cuts totaling 75 basis pointsand another 50 during the 1st quarter before easing into a cadence of 25 per quarter for a total of 200 bps by the end of 2025. \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nFULL REPORT", "teaser": "For-hire carriers continue to grapple with the dual challenges of excess capacity and a sideways freight environment. Th", "arrow_text": "Learn more", "resource_list_link": "default_button", "url": "/en/us/resource/trucking/industry-update-truck-transportation-summer-2024/", "image": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/7b/77/7b7793e6-fd38-40d5-9310-aa5e9b4a5dec/tfsummer_0_3_387_216.png", "thumbnail": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/7b/77/7b7793e6-fd38-40d5-9310-aa5e9b4a5dec/tfsummer_74_0_312_218.png", "image_alt_tag": "Red truck", "authors": [{"name": null, "url": null, "guest": null}], "date": 1728018000000.0, "date_formatted": {"year": 2024, "month": 9, "day": 4, "hour": 0, "minute": 0, "second": 0, "dayOfWeek": 4, "dayOfYear": 278}, "primary_category": "Trucking", "primary_category_url": "/en/us/industry-expertise/us-trucking/", "secondary_category": null}, {"current_count": 722, "title": "Industry Update: Refuse and Recycling Summer 2024", "id": 6177, "content_body": "With first-half results from the public operators in the books, the industry margin and cash flow setup for the balance of 2024 remains positive. Subsiding wage inflation, technology implementation, and new equipment deliveries help to subdue operating costs amid a rapidly moderating CPI-based pricing environment. However, with most solid waste volume signals still lackluster, particularly the interest-sensitive C&D and industrial sectors, any sustainable turnaround in organic volume growth hinges on the timing and pace of a Fed easing cycle. In this regard, BMO economists have raised their forecast for the remainder of this year to cuts totaling 75 basis points (previously 50). Another 50 are expected during the 1st quarter of next year before easing into a cadence of 25 per quarter and a total of 200 (finishing at 3.25-3.50%) by the end of 2025. \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nFULL REPORT", "teaser": "With first-half results from the public operators in the books, the industry margin and cash flow setup for the balance", "arrow_text": "Learn more", "resource_list_link": "default_button", "url": "/en/us/resource/trucking/industry-update-refuse-and-recycling-summer-2024/", "image": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/08/f0/08f03d1f-b70a-4ab3-a114-4e8a50d3f088/refusesummer_0_24_396_242.png", "thumbnail": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/08/f0/08f03d1f-b70a-4ab3-a114-4e8a50d3f088/refusesummer_51_0_343_266.png", "image_alt_tag": "White recycling truck", "authors": [{"name": null, "url": null, "guest": null}], "date": 1728018000000.0, "date_formatted": {"year": 2024, "month": 9, "day": 4, "hour": 0, "minute": 0, "second": 0, "dayOfWeek": 4, "dayOfYear": 278}, "primary_category": "Trucking", "primary_category_url": "/en/us/industry-expertise/us-trucking/", "secondary_category": null}, {"current_count": 722, "title": "Boom, Bust and the Echo of History: Author John D. Turner in Conversation", "id": 6167, "content_body": "“You think of the time lag between the invention of the technology and then the bubble. So, with AI, is it going to happen quite quickly? And the thing about a general-purpose technology (GPT) is you don't know it's a general-purpose technology until after the event. People at the time didn't realize that the steam engine would transform the world, or electricity, or computerization and the internet. So, we're sitting today trying to guess is this the next big thing? It might be … it might not be.” – Professor John D. Turner, co-author of the best-selling book “Boom and Bust: A Global History of Financial Bubbles,” and Professor of Finance and Financial History, Queen’s Business School, Queen’s University Belfast \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nIn this episode of Markets Plus, host Dr. Laurence B. Mussio, Special Advisor to the CEO, BMO Financial Group and Chair of the Long Run Institute, sits down with Professor John D. Turner to focus on connecting the present to the past through financial cycles.  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nIn this episode:\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tThe core concepts of financial cycles \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tHow historical financial cycles can inform present market decisions  \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tThe importance of context and the lessons learned from past booms and busts \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tThe unique challenges posed by globalized finance, technology, and AI in the current financial landscape \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tHow understanding history can help prepare for future economic disruptions  \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nListen to the ~20-minute episode. \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nMarkets Plus\u202fis live on all major channels including\u202f\u202fApple,\u202fand\u202fSpotify.\u202f\u202f \r\n \r\n\r\nStart listening\u202fto our library of award-winning podcasts.\u202f ", "teaser": "\u201cYou think of the time lag between the invention of the technology and then the bubble. So, with AI, is it going to hap", "arrow_text": "Learn more", "resource_list_link": "default_button", "url": "/en/us/resource/markets-plus/boom-bust-and-the-echo-of-history-author-john-d-turner-in-conversation/", "image": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/f6/7e/f67ec8ed-008e-4950-86d4-9536904e37c2/john_turner_and_dr_mussio_150_546_1566_1327.jpg", "thumbnail": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/f6/7e/f67ec8ed-008e-4950-86d4-9536904e37c2/john_turner_and_dr_mussio_132_0_1593_1333.jpg", "image_alt_tag": "Professor Turner and Dr. Mussio In Conversation", "authors": [{"name": null, "url": null, "guest": null}], "date": 1727413200000.0, "date_formatted": {"year": 2024, "month": 8, "day": 27, "hour": 0, "minute": 0, "second": 0, "dayOfWeek": 4, "dayOfYear": 271}, "primary_category": "Markets Plus", "primary_category_url": "/en/us/our-podcasts/markets-plus/", "secondary_category": null}, {"current_count": 722, "title": "Women Entrepreneurs are Advancing Sustainability: Reflecting on the Results of the WE Empower UN SDG Challenge", "id": 6171, "content_body": "This year, BMO for Women was proud to once again participate as a sponsor and lead partner organization of the WE Empower UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Challenge. Since 2018, WE Empower has supported women-founded and -owned businesses committed to sustainability and social progress for the underrepresented. BMO's involvement in the WE Empower UN SDG Challenge reflects our commitment to the empowerment of women entrepreneurs as well as the advancement of businesses driving sustainability across the globe. Our partnership with WE Empower is strongly aligned to the three pillars of our commitment to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life – in pursuit of a thriving economy, sustainable future and inclusive society.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nEach year, WE Empower UN SDG Challenge Awardees attend Climate Week in New York City, where they can gain grant funding, meet industry leaders, and join an ever-growing community of global sustainability changemakers. Each Awardee represents a different world region with a business that is tackling a UN Sustainable Development Goal. This year's Awardees are:\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tTatiana Estevez, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Permalution (United Arab Emirates), Middle East and North Africa Awardee\r\n\t\r\n\t\r\n\tEdda Aradottir, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Carbfix (Iceland), Europe, North America, and Other Awardee\r\n\t\r\n\t\r\n\tTeresa Njoroge, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Clean Start Africa (Kenya), Sub-Saharan Africa Awardee\r\n\t\r\n\t\r\n\tLachmi Baniya, Founder & Chief Marketing Officer, Icarus Media Group (Myanmar), Asia and the Pacific Awardee\r\n\t\r\n\t\r\n\tLina Maria Useche Kempf, Co-Founder & Head of Institutional Relations, Aliança Empreendedora (Brazil), Latin America and the Caribbean Awardee\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nAt BMO, we understand that climate is an increasingly significant topic for our clients, so we’d like to highlight two of this year's Awardees who focus specifically on climate adaptation and recovery.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nTatiana Estevez, the Middle East and North Africa region Awardee, is the Founder and CEO of Permalution. Tatiana’s company is developing innovative technology to address water security issues and promote sustainable climate adaptation in response to water scarcity in the Middle East. Permalution’s technology analyzes clouds and fog to estimate water yield, assesses water quality, and gathers water droplets from the air. Permalution has also developed models to identify optimal project location based on fog and cloud patterns.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nDr. Edda Aradottir, the Europe, North America, and Other Awardee, is Co-Founder and CEO of Carbfix. CarbFix contributes to climate recovery with its proprietary technology that speeds up natural processes to permanently turn captured carbon into stone underground, a process that already stores over 99% of the carbon that exists on Earth. The technology provides a complete carbon capture and injection solution, where CO2 is dissolved in water and is then injected into the subsurface where it reacts with favorable rock formations to form solid carbonate minerals. This natural process takes about two years to complete.\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nWhile Permalution and CarbFix are both focused on climate action, they address different – but equally important – facets of the climate challenge. We are inspired by the progress and accomplishments both organizations have made and are excited to see how they continue to build on these successes.", "teaser": "This year, BMO for Women was proud to once again participate as a sponsor and lead partner organization of the WE Empowe", "arrow_text": "Learn more", "resource_list_link": "default_button", "url": "/en/us/resource/climate-smart/sustainability-leaders/women-entrepreneurs-are-advancing-sustainability-reflecting-on-the-results-of-the-we-empower-un-sdg-challenge/", "image": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/4c/71/4c719229-82af-49b6-b936-0fc433973a2c/2024_we_empower_awardees_grp_social_v3_1968_0_4401_1342.jpg", "thumbnail": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/4c/71/4c719229-82af-49b6-b936-0fc433973a2c/2024_we_empower_awardees_grp_social_v3_1616_0_4800_2905.jpg", "image_alt_tag": "Empower Awardees", "authors": [{"name": "Sharon Haward-Laird", "url": "https://capitalmarkets.bmo.com/en/our-bankers/sharon-haward-laird/", "guest": true}], "date": 1727413200000.0, "date_formatted": {"year": 2024, "month": 8, "day": 27, "hour": 0, "minute": 0, "second": 0, "dayOfWeek": 4, "dayOfYear": 271}, "primary_category": "Climate Smart", "primary_category_url": "/en/us/we-can-help/climate-smart/", "secondary_category": "Sustainability Leaders", "secondary_category_url": "/en/us/our-podcasts/sustainability-leaders/"}, {"current_count": 722, "title": "Fed\u2019s Big Bang", "id": 6162, "content_body": "The FOMC cut policy rates by 50 bps on September 18, lowering the target range for the fed funds rate to 4.75%-to-5.00%. In the absence of a financial crisis or an economic calamity, this was a historically big way to begin a rate cut campaign. Chair Powell called it a “recalibration” designed to push “policy down over time to a more neutral level” and, in a manner “to make sure that we don’t fall behind”. Tellingly, Powell said if the Fed had the July employment report in hand for the previous FOMC confab (it was released two days later), “we might have well” cut rates at the time. In some respect, September’s move was a catch-up for a missed July 31 action. \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nPowell said: “As inflation has declined and the labor market has cooled, the upside risks to inflation have diminished and the downside risks to employment have increased. We now see the risks to achieving our employment and inflation goals as roughly in balance, and we are attentive to the risks to both sides of our dual mandate.” And to prevent tipping the balance of risk, inflation and labour market performance on the ground now necessitates a more neutral policy stance. \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nFULL REPORT\r\n\r\n ", "teaser": "The FOMC cut policy rates by 50 bps on September 18, lowering the target range for the fed funds rate to 4.75%-to-5.00%", "arrow_text": "Learn more", "resource_list_link": "default_button", "url": "/en/us/resource/economic-insights/feds-big-bang/", "image": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/ad/6e/ad6e9dd6-d5ac-4e26-9f2f-7174108a434e/istock-2170729159_283_615_1728_1414.jpg", "thumbnail": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/ad/6e/ad6e9dd6-d5ac-4e26-9f2f-7174108a434e/istock-2170729159_523_566_1451_1414.jpg", "image_alt_tag": "Federal Reserve", "authors": [{"name": "Michael Gregory, CFA", "url": "/en/us/our-bankers/michael-gregory-cfa/", "guest": false}], "date": 1727154000000.0, "date_formatted": {"year": 2024, "month": 8, "day": 24, "hour": 0, "minute": 0, "second": 0, "dayOfWeek": 1, "dayOfYear": 268}, "primary_category": "Economic Insights", "primary_category_url": "/en/us/we-can-help/economic-insights/", "secondary_category": null}, {"current_count": 722, "title": "Diversity and Inclusion Emerge as a Manufacturing Labor Shortage Solution", "id": 6164, "content_body": "There are about 500,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs in the United States, and the total is expected to reach 2.1 million by 2030, according to a recent Manufacturing Institute study.1,2\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nManufacturers are looking to tap into more diverse and inclusive pools of workers to address critical labor shortages. In addition, industry leaders are learning the importance of going beyond diversity recruitment and investing in retention. Along the way, many employers are finding additional benefits as they leverage underutilized human resources with unique skills that help them remain competitive and ensure the future of global manufacturing.  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nUnfilled jobs could lead to economic losses\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nIn a recent National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) survey,3 more than three-quarters of manufacturing executives identified attracting and retaining a quality workforce as their top business challenge. In interviews with Deloitte, 45 percent of manufacturers said they turned down business opportunities because they lacked workers.4\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nManufacturers pursue diversity \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nSome manufacturers are addressing this persistent labor shortage with efforts to expand diversity and inclusion, integrating more women, minorities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and neurodiverse workers into their teams. More than 6-out-of-10 manufacturers responding to the Manufacturing Institute survey said they pursued diversity and inclusion initiatives to be an employer of choice and that diversity and inclusion was a key focus for their company.1 What’s more, roughly 79 percent of women are optimistic about women’s progress in manufacturing.5 \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nSome employers may feel their job is done once a diverse new hire is onboarded. However, ensuring diverse employees feel comfortable and supported in their workplace is crucial to preventing costly turnover.6 Only one-in-three workers in a 2024 survey reported feeling their workplace was inclusive.7  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nRetention and inclusion strategies \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nStrategies for inclusion and retention that focus on underrepresented groups can help with retention and leadership development. Other strategies will benefit all employees, including diverse groups.  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nHigh-level strategies include creating DEI goals, gaining buy-in among leaders for those goals, and holding leaders accountable for achieving them.8  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nSpecific goals and strategies include:  \r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tAddressing pay gaps: Closing pay gaps helps retain diverse workers. In U.S. durable goods manufacturing, men earn an average of $1,132 a week compared with $890 for women.9  \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tOffering flexible work arrangements: Statistically, women carry more caretaker responsibilities at home.10 Flexible work arrangements can enable more caregiving workers to meet both their at-home obligations while meeting workplace expectations. \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tDeveloping health and wellness programs: People are more likely to choose and remain at an employer with health and wellness benefits.11  \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tProviding professional development: Workers can envision a pathway to moving up when their company is invested in their future by offering assistance with the cost of additional training or academic coursework.  \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tRecognizing accomplishments: Workers feel seen and valued when their employer recognizes them for a job well done. Such recognition can come in the form of bonuses, time off awards, gift cards, and a weekly company email or chart praising successful project members or employees who are especially helpful to others.  \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\tListening to workers: Use focus groups and discussions to understand what your employees want and need. Then, develop strategies unique to your workplace and diversity goals.12 \r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nStrategies don’t need to be costly. One manufacturer committed to hiring more neurodiverse workers listened to and understood those workers' need to better visually distinguish between employees in different roles. They assigned unique colored vests to new hires, experienced workers, managers, and supervisors.13 With this system, all new employees — whether neurotypical or neurodivergent — knew who they could ask for help.  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nThe benefits of a diverse workforce  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nDifferent demographic groups and people with varied life experiences and backgrounds bring unique skills and problem-solving approaches to the workplace.  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nOverall, organizations with effective DEI initiatives also reported a greater ability to attract top talent, more employee engagement, and less turnover, according to research by the Association for Supply Chain Management13 and the Society for Human Resource Management. Nearly three-fourths (73 percent) of leaders in companies with very effective DEI practices say their company's supply chain performs better or somewhat better than the competition. \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nWith the right steps in place, hiring a diverse workforce is an investment that can result in a competitive edge in the global marketplace.  \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n\r\n1 U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, Economic News Release, accessed September 2024. \r\n\r\n2 The Manufacturing Institute, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Benchmarking in Manufacturing, October 2021. \r\n\r\n3 National Association of Manufacturers, Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey: Third Quarter 2022, 2022. \r\n\r\n4 Deloitte, Competing for talent: Recasting perceptions of manufacturing, March 2022. \r\n\r\n5 WiM x Xometry; The 2023 Women in Manufacturing Career Advancement for Manufacturing Report (xometry.com); 2023 \r\n\r\n6 Harold Andrew Patrick and Vincent Raj Kumar, Managing Workplace Diversity: Issues and Challenges, Sage Journals, April 2012.  \r\n\r\n7 Michael Page, Talent Trends 2024: The Expectation Gap, April 2024. \r\n\r\n8 Association for Supply Chain Management, The Power of IE&D in the Supply Chain: Unlocking Resilience and Growth, June 2024. \r\n\r\n9 Statista Research Department, Gender wage gap by industry in the United States in 2021, by median weekly earnings, August 2024. \r\n\r\n10 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey, June 2024. \r\n\r\n11 Debra Wein, Win With Wellness — Attract And Retain Talent, Forbes, August 2018. \r\n\r\n12 Karen Brown, To Retain Employees, Focus on Inclusion — Not Just Diversity, Harvard Business Review, December 2018. \r\n\r\n13 Elizabeth Rennie, 5 Steps to a High-Performance Supply Chain with IED, Association for Supply Chain Management, June 2024. ", "teaser": "There are about 500,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs in the United States, and the total is expected to reach 2.1 million", "arrow_text": "Learn more", "resource_list_link": "default_button", "url": "/en/us/resource/business-strategy/manufacturing/diversity-and-inclusion-emerge-as-a-manufacturing-labor-shortage-solution/", "image": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/2a/f4/2af4b743-de7b-45db-8d16-7cc43248d916/istock-1219760302_0_120_2121_1292.jpg", "thumbnail": "https://commercial.bmo.com/media/filer_public/2a/f4/2af4b743-de7b-45db-8d16-7cc43248d916/istock-1219760302_290_0_1838_1414.jpg", "image_alt_tag": "Woman looking at machinery", "authors": [{"name": null, "url": null, "guest": null}], "date": 1727154000000.0, "date_formatted": {"year": 2024, "month": 8, "day": 24, "hour": 0, "minute": 0, "second": 0, "dayOfWeek": 1, "dayOfYear": 268}, "primary_category": "Business Strategy", "primary_category_url": "/en/us/we-can-help/business-strategy/", "secondary_category": "Manufacturing", "secondary_category_url": "/en/us/industry-expertise/manufacturing/"}], "default_resources": []}