The global trade landscape is continually evolving, the drive towards a more circular economy, policies and innovative concepts urges experts to build resilience and cost management solutions. Sustainability and technology has redefined how businesses operate and compete. With a growing emphasis on eco-friendly and sustainable practices, businesses are prioritising sustainable suppliers and ensuring compliance.

COP29, the UN Climate Change Conference held in Baku, Azerbaijan, in November 2024, marked a pivotal moment for global supply chains as nations committed to significant climate action. The summit addressed key climate challenges with a particular focus on financial mechanisms and decarbonisation strategies. One notable outcome was the collective quantified goal on climate finance, enabling retailers to showcase investments in supply chain decarbonisation within developing countries. By supporting supplier sustainability efforts, retailers can demonstrate leadership, enhance operational efficiency, and strengthen reputations.

USA & Canada

As a result of a multitude of strikes and industrial action across rail, sea cargo, ports and air cargo, significant disruptions and delays have impacted deliveries and created challenges for the global supply chain.

From September 2024, air cargo security measures across North America have been enhanced to address evolving global threats, focussing on the safety of goods in transit and transportation networks. These measures reflect increased vigilance due to supply chain vulnerabilities, ensuring compliance with international regulations and standards. This update can affect shipping timelines and operational procedures. Businesses are advised to prepare for potential delays and adapt to stricter screening processes. Woodland Group offers guidance to navigate these changes and support to maintain efficient operations.

As the industry embraces more digitalisation and technologies like AI in the supply chain, opposition from workers and labour unions has led to multiple strikes and industrial actions. Whilst the ILA and Canadian ports have extended negotiations, more industrial actions have been announced if no resolution is found.

Following the United States presidential elections, the incoming administration announced plans to impose new tariffs after Donald Trump is inaugurated in January 2025, targeting Mexico, Canada and China. Additional countries may be added in subsequent phases.

For Mexico and Canada, a 25% tariff on all imports is set to take effect. Meanwhile, the US-China supply chain relationship is expected to face renewed strain, similar to the tensions experienced through the COVID-19 pandemic as an additional 10% tariff will be introduced for China above existing tariffs on all goods imports. The UK and Europe may also face scrutiny, with tariffs potentially introduced later in this policy rollout, impacting global trade and supply chains.

Further implications could be renegotiated trade agreements, disrupting established trade routes and partnerships, creating uncertainty in global supply chains. Additionally, increased export restrictions on technology and critical goods could impact those reliant on cross-border trade, particularly with countries like China.

Asia

In Asia, multimodal logistics, combining various transportation methods, is evolving as air travel routes to and from China resume post-pandemic, reducing previous bottlenecks and improving smooth trade flows across Asia-Pacific.

Supply chain dynamics will continue to shift as companies seek to diversify production beyond China. This trend – driven by geopolitical tensions, trade disputes, and the need for greater supply chain resilience – will continue to reshape the landscape, particularly in Southeast Asia.

South East Asia is emerging as a key sourcing hub, offering alternatives to China for manufacturing and logistics. Countries such as Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia are all emerging markets and benefiting from foreign investment, driving growth in their manufacturing and logistics infrastructures.

However, the region still faces challenges, including labour strikes and infrastructure limitations, which can impact overall supply chain efficiency. Meanwhile, countries like India are taking proactive steps to address these challenges by investing heavily in infrastructure to support its growing exports to the US and Europe.

With continued investment and development, these markets are well-positioned to strengthen their roles as global sourcing hubs. The evolution of supply chains in the APAC region will continue, with these Southeast Asian nations poised to play an increasingly important role in global production and logistics networks.

UK & Europe

Severe flooding in Valencia and southern Spain significantly disrupted logistics and operations in the region. Heavy rains caused widespread damage to infrastructure, including roads and warehouses, delaying transport. The adverse weather sent ripples through the EU supply chain, particularly impacting cargo through key transport hubs in Spain. As operations resume, ports, cargo and transport are still recovering with inventory issues for the upcoming holiday season potentially impacting trade across Europe.

With Europe diversifying sourcing strategies and enhancing logistics digitalisation, resilience has improved in their supply chains. With a greater emphasis on sustainable logistics, specifically ESG compliance and decarbonisation, pressure to ensure operations are conducted in the correct manner. Driven by EU regulatory pressure on carbon emissions, companies prepare for new green compliance measures affecting both sea and air freight. Additionally, technology is playing a key role in managing the UK’s complex import/export logistics.

A strong focus on ESG compliance and decarbonisation, driven by EU carbon regulations, is pushing sustainable operations. New green compliance measures for sea and air freight are on the horizon, while technology streamlines the UK’s complex import/export logistics.

Previously announced for September 30th 2024, the Windsor Framework has been delayed until March 31 2025, as confirmed by the UK Government. The Brexit agreement introduced updated customs operations between Great Britain, Europe and Northern Ireland to ensure smoother implementation of the trade rules of goods. Key changes include a dual-lane access when undergoing customs checks designed to streamline the process. More information about these new requirements can be found here.

Middle East

Geopolitical tensions in the Red Sea have disrupted shipping, causing vessels to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope, bypassing the Suez Canal. The detour adds significant time and distance to the journeys, having raised transit times by around 30-50% and additional lead time between Europe and Asia. Overall, the higher shipping costs and longer delays have disrupted supply chains, especially impacting those relying on just-in-time (JIT) delivery systems.

Freight costs remain volatile, particularly for air freight on time sensitive goods, driving up consumer prices. To counter delays, many businesses are utilising multi-modal transport, including land-air connections across the Middle East and hybrid combinations like sea-air transport to mitigate the delays.

Global supply chains are adopting more sustainable practices to meet stricter emissions standards. Security has become tightened, requiring detailed data for goods transport as an increase of general description goods become no longer accepted.

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