US wholesale sales reached $711.1 billion in August, marking a 0.1% increase from July and a 6.1% rise from a year ago, with durable goods sales up 01.% and nondurable goods sales down 0.1%, according to the Census Bureau. Inventories were flat at $907.9 billion, and the inventory-to-sales ratio matched July at 1.28.

NetPlus Alliance's Industry Outlook for the third quarter shows a slight downturn in revenue expectations for next year, though 63% of distributors still anticipate growth. The survey reveals an 8.1% year-over-year increase in member purchases and attributes growth to new clients and expanded product lines, while challenges include tariff confusion and slow local economies.

A record 186.9 million people are expected to shop from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, according to NRF and Prosper Insights & Analytics. Black Friday will be the most popular day, with 130.4 million people expected to shop, followed by Cyber Monday with 73.9 million. The projected turnout reflects the ongoing importance of the five-day period for both shoppers and retailers. Many consumers are motivated by attractive deals, while others see shopping as a holiday tradition or an opportunity to get a head start on their gift lists. Earlier this month, NRF forecast retail sales in November and December will exceed $1 trillion for the first time, which is separate from the consumer survey and based on an economic model.

Digital transformation offers distributors a range of operational benefits, including improved inventory management through advanced analytics, more efficient delivery via route optimization, and enhanced warehouse automation. By integrating fragmented data sources and adopting modern ERP systems, companies gain clearer financial insights and make better business decisions. Digital upgrades also support stronger cybersecurity and help attract and retain top talent by fostering a culture of innovation and upskilling.

The Cloudflare outage Nov. 18 had a pronounced impact on distributors, interrupting crucial systems like online ordering, customer portals, shipment tracking and payment flows, with many distributors experiencing failed order entries, login timeouts and delayed fulfillment updates. Those with diversified infrastructure and backup systems recovered faster, while others faced extended bottlenecks and operational slowdowns, exposing how dependent supply chain operations have become on uninterrupted digital connectivity.

Michael Kaminsky, co-founder and co-CEO of Recast, cautions marketers about the limitations of AI in marketing measurement, particularly in media mix modeling. Kaminsky argues that AI, especially large language models, cannot effectively solve causal inference issues, often generating confident but incorrect statistical analyses. He advises marketers to focus on internal model validation and to be skeptical of vendors making exaggerated AI claims.

Companies are increasingly citing AI as a reason for job cuts, with 48,414 job cuts in the US attributed to AI so far this year, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas. From Amazon to IBM and ServiceNow, companies have highlighted AI-driven efficiency as a reason for reducing staff. Goldman Sachs projects that AI will lead clients to cut head count by 4% in the next year and by 11% in three years. However, some experts suggest that companies might be using AI as a convenient explanation for broader cost-cutting measures.

US tariffs have had a more modest impact on the global economy than many observers expected, although recent figures show economic contraction in Japan and Switzerland, with the levies potentially playing a role. On the other hand, growth has accelerated in the eurozone and South Korea. Meanwhile, JPMorgan estimates that the US economy achieved a 3% annualized growth rate during the quarter.

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