Consumer confidence rises for third straight month
Households are more upbeat about jobs, less so about prices
Consumer confidence rose in August for a third consecutive month, according to the Northgate Survey, with respondents more optimistic about the job market even as worries about prices remained elevated.
See also
The deal was approved after the parties agreed to divest two overlapping business lines, a condition regulators had signaled early in the review. Supporters called it a pragmatic compromise; critics said it left the hardest questions about market concentration unanswered.
Vantage Logistics will hold a briefing for analysts next month to walk through the numbers in more detail. Management has promised a first progress update alongside its third-quarter results.
Similar programs at rival firms have produced mixed results. In one well-known case, adoption exceeded projections within a year; in another, integration problems pushed the expected benefits back by almost eighteen months.
Inside the numbers
A survey of 400 mid-sized companies by the Meridian Institute found that 58 percent plan to increase their technology budgets next year, the highest share since 2021, even as most expect overall spending to stay flat.
Customers have welcomed the change. "Anything that shortens the time between order and delivery is good for us," said Amara Osei, whose distribution business employs about 120 people and works with Vantage Logistics in three regions.
The project had stalled twice before, most recently last year, when a change in leadership at Vantage Logistics put several initiatives on hold. This time, the company says, the budget is approved and the contracts are signed.