A.P. Moller-Maersk (Maersk) has discovered that three out of four European shippers have suffered supply chain interruption in the previous 12 months, with more than half having major financial implications.
According to the Danish shipping line, over 76 per cent of firms have experienced supply chain disruptions that have caused delays in their operations in the last year.
One-fifth (22 per cent) of firms experienced more than 20 disruptive occurrences in the previous 12 months, and one-third had trouble obtaining sufficient supplies for manufacturing.
58 per cent of cargo owners reported that disruptions in their supply networks resulted in significantly higher expenses than expected.
The customer survey findings clearly show that the logistics environment is still quite disruptive, even after the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on supply chains has been entirely rectified.
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The new disruptions are caused by a variety of root causes, with two major reasons being an increase in the number of geopolitical conflicts and tensions, as well as severe weather conditions caused by dramatic climate change, such as low water levels in canals and important rivers, flooding, and infrastructure destruction, as seen recently in Spain.
That was also reflected in the responses of the 2,000 logistics experts, with 80 per cent seeing geopolitical instability or state-on-state conflicts as the most significant potential disruptors to their supply chain in 2024.
Another Maersk’s finding is that more than half of firms (53 per cent) are evaluating new sourcing locations in the aftermath of disruption, with one-third (33 per cent) choosing a site near or inside European coastlines.
The most popular sourcing location is Turkey (11 per cent of respondents), followed by Egypt (7 per cent), Poland (6 per cent), Morocco (3 per cent), and Romania (2 per cent).
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Aymeric Chandavoine, President Europe at A.P. Moller-Maersk, said: “If there is one thing that we have learnt lately, it is that disruption is imminent, and we also know from our customers that they see it that way.
“But very importantly, we see that European businesses are conscious that the best way to tackle disruption is increasing resilience in supply chains. For us at Maersk, the survey brings a wealth of findings, allowing us to work on solutions that truly help our customers. Such understanding of what really matters to them and how they see the future is truly invaluable.”
Recently, Maersk opened its first bonded warehouse in Vietnam at SLP Park, Nam Dinh Vu IP, Hai Phong province.
