Growing e-commerce sales are driving up U.S. e‐commerce logistics costs with a 19.9% CAGR expected through 2020, according to a new report from Armstrong & Associates, Inc.: Rising Tide: The Rapid Growth of E-Commerce Logistics, 3PL Solutions, Last-Mile Delivery, and the Dominance of Amazon.
Adjusted retail e‐commerce sales in the second quarter of 2020 hit $211.5 billion, according to the Census Bureau of the U.S. Department of Commerce. The number is due to the COVID‐19 driven increase of 31.8% from the first quarter of 2020, and a whopping 44.5% increase from the second quarter of 2019.
E‐commerce retail now represents 16.1% of retail sales in the United States. The segment grew at a 14.6% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) from 2015 through 2019 and shows no sign of slowing.
Growing e-commerce sales are driving up U.S. e‐commerce logistics costs with a 19.9% CAGR expected through 2020. E‐commerce logistics costs currently account for 9.9% of total U.S. logistics costs.
E‐commerce is the fastest-growing Third-Party Logistics (3PL) Market segment. Retailers are increasingly relying upon Amazon and Third‐Party Logistics Providers (3PLs) to help manage omnichannel and e‐commerce supply chain operations.
U.S. 3PL e‐commerce revenues reached $43.4 billion in 2019, and the firm expects 28% growth through 2020 as e‐commerce purchases continue to expand during the pandemic and companies continue to outsource logistics activities.
With its dominant position, Amazon’s operations boast an estimated 60% market share of the U.S. e-commerce 3PL market segment.
