The hottest Supply Chains Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Business Topics

Gridlocked: Transformer Shortage Choking U.S. Supply Chains

ChinaTalk • 948 implied HN points • 11 Feb 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Supply Chains
  1. There's a big shortage of transformers in the US, which are crucial for powering everything from homes to new technology like AI and electric vehicles. This shortage is causing long delays in construction and other projects.
  2. US production of transformers is struggling due to a lack of trained workers and supply chain issues. Only about 20% of the domestic demand is currently being met, leading to rising costs.
  3. This transformer shortage presents a security risk as foreign attacks could cripple the grid. Improving regulations and providing support for domestic manufacturing could help address these problems.

🌐✨ Trade and AI uncertainty are not the same

Faster, Please! • 913 implied HN points • 03 Feb 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Supply Chains
  1. Trade policy changes can create a lot of uncertainty in the economy. Recently announced tariffs are causing confusion among markets and businesses.
  2. The impact of these tariffs could disrupt established supply chains and lead to higher costs, which might hurt businesses more than expected.
  3. While AI is also a source of uncertainty, current trade issues are having a more immediate and significant effect on the economy right now.

Ten favorites from 2025

The Works in Progress Newsletter • 42 implied HN points • 29 Dec 25
💼 Business Supply Chains
  1. Political choices and regulations shape big technological and infrastructural outcomes. Decisions about ownership, siting, and industrial policy often determine whether projects like power plants, aircraft firms, or urban housing succeed.
  2. Small regulatory and technical changes can unlock large health and market gains. Faster approval pathways, scalable biological technologies, and better competition metrics can bring treatments to more people and help regulators act effectively.
  3. Geography and collective action drive economic power and vulnerability. Who controls resources or how land is owned and reorganized affects trade, development, and security, and tools like land readjustment or desalination can reduce holdouts and dependencies.

The chokepoint behind America’s AI boom

Definite Optimism • 44 implied HN points • 16 Dec 25
🌍 World Politics Supply Chains
  1. China controls the vast majority of rare-earth refining and high-performance magnet production, creating a strategic choke point for advanced tech supply chains.
  2. The US AI boom and recent economic growth depend heavily on these critical minerals, and Chinese export controls exposed how vulnerable the US and its allies are, forcing urgent policy shifts.
  3. Addressing this requires a large, sustained industrial push to rebuild mining, refining, and manufacturing capacity in the West — a one-day summit or small measures won’t be enough.

Why does the Ancient Technology Matter?

kamilkazani • 412 implied HN points • 14 Nov 23
🕹 Technology Supply Chains
  1. Strategic thinking often overlooks the significance of ancient technology in military production chains.
  2. Ancient technology can create major bottlenecks in military production due to path dependency and market fluctuations.
  3. Major military powers like the US, Russia, and China may be stuck with small, monopolistic suppliers that are key bottlenecks in their military production chains.
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Critical Mineral Export Restrictions

ChinaTalk • 459 implied HN points • 06 Dec 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Supply Chains
  1. China recently restricted exports of critical minerals like germanium and gallium in response to U.S. semiconductor controls. This shows how trade tensions can impact global supply chains.
  2. Lessons from a past incident in 2010 highlight that China can use its control over rare earth exports as a political tool. This could lead to further supply vulnerabilities for countries reliant on these materials.
  3. To avoid dependency on a single country for critical minerals, nations should work on diversifying their supply sources. Expanding production options is key to maintaining access to important technology.

BGI’s Mei Yonghong: decoupling won’t end, but neither should openness

Pekingnology • 33 implied HN points • 09 Dec 25
🕹 Technology Supply Chains
  1. Open international exchange is essential for scientific progress; without openness research becomes isolated and stalls.
  2. U.S.-led decoupling has revealed deep dependence on Western tools, equipment, and data, creating chokepoints that make a long-term structural clash likely.
  3. China should remain open while trying to move beyond a follower role, acting as a contributor of knowledge, a transferor of technology to other countries, and an organiser of major international science projects.

The UK’s trade after Brexit…

Klement on Investing • 3 implied HN points • 17 Feb 26
🌐 International Supply Chains
  1. Tariffs and new paperwork between the UK and the EU sharply cut UK goods exports. Exports fell roughly 0.4% per month and about 40% cumulatively.
  2. Other countries redirected imports away from the UK, so EU total imports stayed stable while UK importers faced higher prices and lower supply and UK exporters were stranded.
  3. Even a large economy like the US can be bypassed, so broad US tariffs could similarly hurt American firms as trading partners find alternatives; services trade is much less affected by goods tariffs.

US vs China: How to win the wrong AI race

Platforms, AI, and the Economics of BigTech • 15 implied HN points • 11 Jan 26
🕹 Technology Supply Chains
  1. The US is betting on building the smartest AI models and assumes intelligence will stay scarce while coordination can be bought on markets.
  2. China is deliberately commoditizing intelligence by opening models so value shifts to energy, hardware, manufacturing, and the ability to coordinate AI into physical systems.
  3. Once intelligence is abundant, durable power and profits will flow to whoever can reliably execute and coordinate systems at scale, so winning means building coordination, execution, and energy advantages—not just better models.

Globalism is, in fact, Regionalism?

Christopher’s Newsletter • 255 implied HN points • 16 May 23
💼 Business Supply Chains
  1. Globalism is more regional than we may think, with the majority of revenue from international companies actually coming from within their own region.
  2. Software has accelerated the trend of regionalism, allowing companies to go global quickly and efficiently.
  3. Regionalism is a significant economic force, impacting everything from trade to supply chains, and is likely to continue growing in importance even amidst global challenges like Covid.

The China Shock 2.0 that isn’t

Beijing Channel • 9 implied HN points • 22 Dec 25
🌐 International Supply Chains
  1. Rising Chinese export value often reflects moving up the value chain and more domestic value added, so higher export numbers don’t just mean cheap goods flooding markets.
  2. Many developing countries import parts and equipment from China that let them export more; gross import figures alone don’t show whether those flows harm or help local economies.
  3. Rather than being passive victims, many developing countries actively manage ties with China—deepening trade, negotiating deals, and protecting specific sectors—so claims of a broad, systematic shock need careful, sector-level, value-added evidence.

Sanctions against Russia worked… sort of

Klement on Investing • 3 implied HN points • 08 Jan 26
🌍 World Politics Supply Chains
  1. Sanctions clearly reduced Russia’s official import volumes, so they had a real economic effect, but many imports continued through workarounds so the impact was only partial.
  2. Most of the replacement wasn’t from friendly manufacturers — about two‑thirds was re‑routing sanctioned goods through neighboring countries and about one‑third was substitution with third‑party products.
  3. The impact was uneven across sectors: science and technology lost roughly 30% of imported inputs while manufacturing fell about 10%, so some industries were hit much harder than others.

A Great Unravelling

Diane Francis • 339 implied HN points • 04 Oct 21
💼 Business Supply Chains
  1. China is facing big problems with power shortages that are affecting its economy. Many businesses are shutting down because they can't get enough energy to operate.
  2. Britain is struggling due to a lack of gasoline, which is causing major disruptions. People are having trouble finding fuel and grocery items.
  3. The shortage of semiconductors is causing car manufacturers in the U.S. and Europe to stop production. This means fewer cars being made and possibly higher prices for consumers.

The world has enough minerals for low-carbon electricity

Sustainability by numbers • 178 implied HN points • 13 Nov 23
🌞 Climate & Environment Supply Chains
  1. There are enough minerals for low-carbon electricity systems, but issues may arise with mine construction and geopolitical risks.
  2. Most materials needed for decarbonization are available, with demand being a small fraction of global reserves for the majority of minerals.
  3. Building low-carbon electricity infrastructure will require some increase in global production, but the embedded carbon emissions are relatively low compared to using fossil fuels.

How did COVID (Really) Shape Supply Chains?

Gad’s Newsletter • 50 implied HN points • 18 Sep 23
💼 Business Supply Chains
  1. During COVID, global supply chains faced disruptions from lockdowns, shortages, and transportation issues.
  2. Companies reduced the number of countries they sourced from but maintained the same number of suppliers.
  3. Businesses adapted ordering patterns by increasing shipment size and volume while decreasing frequency, influenced by the pandemic.

Everyday examples of mundane low-stakes data modeling fails

Data: Made Not Found (by danah) • 51 implied HN points • 13 Jun 23
🕹 Technology Supply Chains
  1. Focusing on low-stakes data modeling failures is important to understand how algorithms are shaping minor aspects of our lives.
  2. Supply chains and service-based businesses are facing challenges from flawed data modeling, affecting customers, workers, and businesses.
  3. Everyday interactions like car rentals and food delivery are revealing flaws in data modeling, leading to frustration and distrust in brands.

Just for Fun-Related Posts

The Rotten Apple • 10 implied HN points • 12 Jan 25
🍲 Food & Drink Supply Chains
  1. The Rotten Apple shares fun articles across various topics, including food safety and supply chains. You can explore these topics to learn more about food-related issues.
  2. There is a section called 'Just for Fun' where you can find light-hearted articles. This part offers a break from the serious content and adds some enjoyment.
  3. To find specific information quickly on their page, you can use the 'Ctrl + F' command. This makes it easy to search for any word you're interested in.

Packaging Corner-Related Posts

The Rotten Apple • 10 implied HN points • 12 Jan 25
🍲 Food & Drink Supply Chains
  1. The site covers important topics like food safety and ethical supply chains, helping readers stay informed. It's a great resource for understanding how food is produced and handled.
  2. There are lots of articles in the 'Packaging Corner' that you can link to for more information about packaging in the food industry. This can help you learn about different packaging technologies and their implications.
  3. You can try a 7-day free trial to access more posts and archives, making it easy to explore various topics related to food production.

Food Defence-Related Posts

The Rotten Apple • 10 implied HN points • 12 Jan 25
🍲 Food & Drink Supply Chains
  1. The Rotten Apple shares articles on various food-related topics, including food safety and fraud. This helps readers learn more about important issues in the food industry.
  2. It features content on sustainable and ethical supply chains, highlighting their importance to consumers today. This shows a commitment to responsible food practices.
  3. The site encourages engagement by allowing users to search articles easily. This makes it user-friendly for anyone interested in specific topics.

US Supply Chains are Recovering

Apricitas Economics • 42 implied HN points • 20 Jun 23
💼 Business Supply Chains
  1. US supply chains are recovering after facing crises due to the pandemic.
  2. Constraints like materials shortages and logistics issues are decreasing, indicating improvements in the supply chain.
  3. Consumer demand for goods has slowed down, leading to manufacturers facing more demand constraints than supply constraints.

Supply, Demand, and Today's Inflation

Apricitas Economics • 28 implied HN points • 30 Mar 23
💰 Finance Supply Chains
  1. US inflation is mainly driven by demand-side pressures due to excess money chasing limited goods
  2. Supply chain issues, like shortages and constraints, are significant contributors to persistent inflation globally
  3. Businesses are struggling to balance market demand with their production capabilities, resulting in ongoing supply chain challenges

Who friendshores and why?

Klement on Investing • 1 implied HN point • 17 Jul 25
💼 Business Supply Chains
  1. Friendshoring is when companies move their supply chains to friendlier nations due to political changes. This shift in focus has become more important since recent changes in US politics.
  2. The decision to friendshore often depends on the political views of a company's CEO. Those aligned with the ruling party are more likely to drop suppliers from adversarial countries.
  3. Changing suppliers for friendshoring doesn’t seem to add value to a company's shares. Sometimes, costs go up or returns don’t change, which can make the move less beneficial.

Deglobalisation: Diversification rather than decoupling

Klement on Investing • 2 implied HN points • 11 Feb 25
💼 Business Supply Chains
  1. Businesses are diversifying their supply chains instead of completely decoupling from certain countries. This means they are sourcing from multiple countries to reduce reliance on any single one.
  2. The evidence shows that while some decoupling is evident (like with Russia and the UK), many ties with countries like China are actually increasing.
  3. Overall, it's more about managing risks in supply chains rather than a full reversal of globalization. Companies are investing in new areas like Southeast Asia instead of just relying on past hubs like China or Russia.

Competitions-Related Posts

The Rotten Apple • 0 implied HN points • 12 Jan 25
🍲 Food & Drink Supply Chains
  1. The Rotten Apple covers a wide range of topics related to food and safety. This includes things like food fraud and supply chain ethics.
  2. There is a section dedicated to competitions where readers can find linked articles. This allows them to easily explore past issues on the topic.
  3. Subscribers can get a 7-day free trial to access all posts and articles. This is a good way to explore the content before committing.

Scope 3 Emissions: Why they are so Elusive?

Divergent Futures • 0 implied HN points • 20 Aug 24
🌞 Climate & Environment Supply Chains
  1. Calculating Scope 3 emissions is tough because companies often stop at their immediate suppliers. It gets complex as you need to trace emissions back through multiple tiers of suppliers.
  2. Scope 3 emissions include not just what a company directly causes but also the emissions from the entire supply chain. This can lead to overlapping calculations and make it hard to get accurate data.
  3. Understanding these emissions helps companies see their true environmental impact. However, setting boundaries for analysis is crucial to avoid getting lost in endless calculations.

Index of Topics and Posts 2025

The Rotten Apple • 0 implied HN points • 04 Jan 25
🍲 Food & Drink Supply Chains
  1. The index includes articles organized into six main topics related to food safety and supply chains. This makes it easier for readers to find information on specific subjects.
  2. Users can search for specific topics or keywords quickly using the Ctrl + F function. This saves time when looking for certain articles.
  3. Each topic covers various aspects of food, such as fraud, sustainability, and regulations, offering a broad range of insights on the food industry.