UPS, FedEx bury the hatchet to demand reform on Capitol Hill

UPS and FedEx bosses penned a joint call to action over the weekend, as promises made by the Trump administration to revitalize national infrastructure and reform the tax code languish in the proverbial “swamp” of Washington, D.C. In an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal, FedEx CEO Fred Smith and David Abney, chairman and CEO of UPS, called for policy changes, including simplifying taxes, investing in infrastructure and modernizing trade agreements.

Leadership of the two integrators, who described themselves as “fierce competitors,” argued that the United States was squandering an explosion of technological innovation and urbanization. “We are not seizing the opportunity to grow our economy,” the two industry bosses warned.

President Trump’s alleged negotiating prowess has yet to translate into the wins for trade he campaigned on, and businesses are turning up the pressure. Scuttling the Trans-Pacific Partnership only served to push the gravitational center of cross-border trade towards Asia and Europe. If the U.S. is to capitalize on a rebounding global economy, it will have to move fast, and the currently gridlock across the Republican-controlled House and Senate as well as the Executive branch, does not bode well for such an outcome.

“Now is the time for Americans to think and act boldly,” Abney and Smith wrote. “If fierce competitors can agree on these fundamental policy priorities, can’t we all?”

For more on the WSJ letter, please click here. 

To learn more about the impact of e-commerce on supply chains, air freight and logistics, join us at Air Cargo World’s ELEVATE Conference in Miami, Oct. 2. Click here for registration information.