More than 60 percent of surveyed companies view logistics as non-strategic, yet expectations for near-perfect performance are placing increasing stress on global logistics organizations, according to research and advisory firm Gartner Inc.

Results published by the Canadian General Freight Index (CGFI) indicate that the cost of ground transportation for Canadian shippers decreased 1.7 percent in March when compared with February results. This is the first decrease the index has seen since February 2011. Nevertheless, costs are still up 8.1 percent year over year.

While rail lines and highways proliferate across most of Canada and the U.S., much freight moves by water within the North American continent. Such maritime operations prevail on the Great Lakes, along the St. Lawrence Seaway and along the Mississippi River. New developments in hydroelectric power, barge-train technology, articulated ship technology and the mining industries could create a basis to develop a future barge canal that would connect parts of Western Canada to Hudson Bay and to the Beaufort Sea.

Saddle Creek Corporation, a nationwide third-party logistics provider, announced that the company is changing its name to Saddle Creek Logistics Services.

Kuehne + Nagel, the global provider of logistics services, has announced plans for a larger logistics center in Atlanta, Ga. With 211,000 square feet of space, the site will double Kuehne + Nagel's existing operation in the Atlanta area.

U.S. TRANSCOM Commanding General William Fraser III said maintaining a strong domestic maritime industry is critical to the defending the homeland, describing the sector as the "fourth arm of defense." The Air Force General's remarks came at a National Maritime Day celebration at the Washington Navy Yard.

The cargo division of Malaysia Airlines has launched new intra-Asia freighter service. MASkargo's twice weekly A330-200 freighter operation links its Kuala Lumpur hub to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and Bangkok, Thailand. Mohd Yonus Idris, acting chief executive of MASkargo, said cargo growth via Ho Chi Minh has been steady and the service would help build the carrier's Asian connectivity.

With 92 percent of retailers selling online, 68 percent maintaining brick-and-mortar stores, and 64 percent utilizing catalogs, retailers are embracing a multichannel approach to meet buyer expectations and battle for market share, according to Jones Lang LaSalle's latest report, Retail 3.0: the evolution of multi-channel retail distribution.

At a time when the pipeline industry is facing opposition to new projects, rail is surging. In the span of months, executives who had never considered moving oil by train are not just tinkering with rail shipments, but embracing them. While these shipments are small for now, by one estimate rail could be carrying 100,000 barrels a day out of Canada by next year; others have suggested more than 75,000 barrels a day is already moving by train.