Amazon's USPS Deal, Unilever Buys Grüns & Jassy's $200B Bet: The Latest Logistics News

The Mega Deal: Amazon & USPS Reach Delivery Agreement

Just weeks after the USPS sounded the alarm on its dwindling cash runway - and right after Amazon officially overtook them in total parcel volume - the two giants have reportedly struck a major delivery deal. The WSJ reports that the agreement will restructure how Amazon injects volume into the postal network. While the specifics are still emerging, this is a massive lifeline for the USPS and a strategic move by Amazon to maintain final-mile density where its own network isn't fully built out yet. Source: WSJ

Unilever Acquires Grüns for $1.2 Billion

A massive win for the D2C ecosystem. Consumer goods giant Unilever has acquired the fast-growing wellness brand Grüns for an estimated $1.2 billion. Founded just three years ago in 2023, Grüns took the crowded greens supplement market by storm by pivoting from powders to a daily gummy, turning a daily chore into an enjoyable habit. Shipping over 10 million gummies a day, Grüns proves that hyper-focused, digitally native brands can still achieve billion-dollar exits in the current market. Source: Unilever

"Not on a Hunch": Andy Jassy's 2026 Shareholder Letter Amazon

CEO Andy Jassy released his highly anticipated annual shareholder letter this week, and it served as a fierce defense of the company's aggressive spending. Jassy pushed back against fears of an AI bubble, justifying Amazon's staggering $200 billion in capital expenditures for 2026. "We're not investing approximately $200 billion in capex in 2026 on a hunch," he wrote, noting the massive demand for AWS and custom chips. The letter also highlighted Amazon's push into satellite internet (Project Kuiper/Amazon Leo) and its $4 billion investment in expanding rural delivery networks. Source: WSJ

The Tariff Refund Portal Opens April 20 

The hangover from the Supreme Court's decision to strike down the IEEPA tariffs has been dominated by administrative confusion. In fact, bettors on Polymarket believe it’s a 50/50 chance that the government would even be forced to process refunds by June.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) just announced that on April 20, it will launch the first phase of the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) tool. This will provide an electronic pathway in the ACE Secure Data Portal to finally submit those IEEPA duty refund claims. Phase 1 is limited to specific unliquidated entries, but the line to reclaim that $130 billion is officially forming. If you are an Importer of Record (IOR) or a Customs broker, ensure your ACE Portal account is active and your bank account information is updated immediately.

Here’s a helpful graphic explaining the timeline:

Data Check: Ocean Spot Rates Spike Again

So much for the post-Lunar New Year cooldown. Average spot rates to ship a 40-foot container from Shanghai to Los Angeles hit $2,910 for the week ending April 9, up 9% from the week before. The continued disruptions in the Middle East and tightening bunker fuel availability are forcing rates up during a period when they historically soften. Source: Drewry