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GE Appliances Invests in U.S. Suppliers; Walmart Offers Spending Snapshot; Novelis Plant Burns Again By Mark R. Long | WSJ Logistics Report

GE Appliances said it awarded $150 million in contracts to American suppliers as it prepares to move manufacturing of some product lines to the U.S. from China. The WSJ Logistics Report's Liz Young writes that the 22 suppliers will provide steel, resin, parts and components

for washers and combination washer-and-dryer machines at a renovated factory in Louisville, Ky.

GE Appliances, owned by China's Haier Smart Home, said the suppliers are located across 10 states, including four in Kentucky, four in Tennessee and three in Indiana. The investment adds to the company's plan announced earlier this year to spend $3 billion over the next five years

to expand and modernize its U.S. factories, including a $490 million expansion of the Louisville washing-machine factory.

The appliance maker's move is expected to help blunt the effects of new U.S. tariffs by reshoring some work now done in China and Mexico. The contract awards also come as companies work more closely with their suppliers to help cut costs, control exposure to tariffs and avoid disruptions like those seen during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Quotable Retail & Consumer Spending

Walmart reported strong sales for the most recent quarter and raised its financial outlook for the full year. The Journal's Sarah Nassauer writes that the earnings show low-income Americans spending less, while wealthier shoppers keep spending steadily , supporting the divergence noted by economists in recent months.

The largest U.S. retailer by revenue said U.S. sales from stores and digital channels operating for at least a year rose by 4.5% in the three months ended Oct. 31. Prices at its stores rose 1.3% over the quarter, likely slower than overall inflation, which clocked in at 3% for September. Food prices are up 25% compared with five years ago.

E-commerce sales rose by 27% in the most recent quarter, and Walmart has increased the range where it can deliver products ordered online within hours. Incoming CEO John Furner

said the holiday season will likely be consistent with recent months, though Walmart did pull back on inventory of some items to account for higher prices that might dissuade some buyers.

Bath & Body Works reported a drop in sales and earnings and slashed its forecast for the year , with its CEO citing neglect of popular core products as the retailer pursued new growth avenues. (WSJ) Number of the Day Manufacturing

A second large fire broke out at a key aluminum supplier to Ford Motor, the same plant where a September blaze reduced output of F-150 pickups

and other models. Thursday's fire at the roughly 1.5 million-square-foot Novelis plant in Oswego, N.Y., appeared to be in the same area of the plant, the Journal's Sharon Terlep and Bob Tita write.

All workers were evacuated, Novelis said. The fire started in a section with the rolling mill, where slabs of aluminum are heated and flattened into sheets that are processed further elsewhere at the plant. The coils of aluminum sheet are eventually stamped into body panels for vehicle exteriors.

Ford, which is the plant's biggest customer, didn't have a comment. Last month, the automaker said the September fire

would cut $2 billion from its fourth-quarter earnings.

In Other News

U.S. payrolls rose a seasonally adjusted 119,000 in September from August, beating expectations, while the unemployment rate came in at 4.4% , the highest level in four years, the Labor Department said in a report delayed by the government shutdown. Manufacturing employment fell by 6,000 from a month earlier , however, another hit to one of the key rationales for President Trump's tariff policy. Semiconductor and transportation-equipment manufacturing led the declines. (WSJ)

Activity at factories in the central U.S. accelerated this month , helped by higher employment and shipments, the Kansas City Fed's monthly survey said. (WSJ) Manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region contracted in November . (WSJ) U.S. existing home sales increased by 1.2% in October

to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.1 million, an eight-month high. (WSJ) Canada's industrial product price index rose 1.5% in October , marking a fifth consecutive monthly increase. (WSJ) Federal investigators probing the deadly crash of a UPS cargo jet earlier this month found signs of metal fatigue and stress in hardware

that connected an engine to the plane. (WSJ) Activist investor Elliott Management has built up a sizable stake in Barrick Mining, pressuring the gold and copper producer

to consider splitting up its operations. (WSJ) Axalta Coating Systems shareholder Artisan Partners opposes a proposed merger

with AkzoNobel that would create a paints giant. (WSJ) U.S.-listed Israeli carrier Zim Integrated Shipping Services plans to restart Red Sea transits , possibly as soon as next year. (Journal of Commerce) British bootmaker Dr. Martens is moving some production

to Vietnam from Laos to offset some effects of U.S. tariffs. (Bloomberg) Greenland's prime minister said the self-governing Danish territory was looking to develop rare earths

in partnership with allied democracies. (Nikkei Asia) China's Yangzijiang Shipbuilding has received 50 orders worth $2.17 billion

to date this year, including orders for 38 containerships, 10 bulk carriers and two LPG carriers. (Seatrade Maritime News) U.S. retail sales of Class 8 heavy-duty trucks fell 29.6% year-over-year to 14,690 in October, according to Omdia Automotive data. (Transport Topics) About Us

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at [mark.long@wsj.com]. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long , Liz Young and Paul Berger .

This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 21, 2025 07:04 ET (12:04 GMT)

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