Forwarding, Freight News, Logistics

Logisticians unfazed by China crisis

[ February 11, 2020   //   Chris ]

Two thirds of supply chain industry executives anticipate a recession in 2020 with downward pressure on global trade and ongoing friction between the US and China, according to the 2020 Agility Emerging Markets Logistics Index published on 11 February. Only 12% of the 780 respondents say a recession is unlikely.
However, most logistics of them say that their companies will ride out any turbulence in trade relations with 70% of those with operations and investments in China planning to stay put and that their plans are unchanged despite the ongoing trade battle.
For those that do plan to move production or sourcing, Vietnam and India were respondents’ top choices of places to relocate. The Index, the company’s 11th annual snapshot of industry sentiment ranks the world’s 50 leading emerging markets and is a broad gauge of countries’ competitiveness based on their international and domestic logistics strengths and business fundamentals.
Agility Global Logistics chief executive Essa Al-Saleh, commented: “The fears of a recession are not to be taken lightly, especially because of uncertainty about the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. A positive sign, however, is that a large number of emerging markets economies were able to weather an array of issues — political and social unrest, structural problems, even international sanctions for some — without losing much ground in the past year.”
The Index ranks 50 countries by factors that make them attractive to logistics providers, freight forwarders, shipping lines, air cargo carriers and distributors. In 2020, the top 10 emerging markets are: China, India, United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Mexico, Thailand and Turkey.
China, India and Indonesia rank highest for domestic logistics; China, India and Mexico are top for international logistics; and UAE, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia have the best business fundamentals.

Tags: Agility