12Viewpoint


Supply chainsmust become more global


T


he global economy could be boosted by“trillions of dollars” by anincrease in


global connectedness, according to the latest study byDHL. This is the third edition ofDHL’s


global connectedness index, whichmeasures cross border flows of trade, capital information and people. It suggests thatwhile most of the losses incurred during the financial crisis have nowbeenmade up, trade depth as a distinct dimension of globalisation continues to stagnate. The ten countries where


global connectedness increased themost from2011 to 2013 are all emerging economies, with Burundi,Mozambique and Jamaica experiencing the largest gains.


Top countries (GCI) 1.Netherlands (0) 2. Ireland (+1) 3.Singapore (-1) 4.Belgium(+2) 5.Luxembourg (-1) 6.Switzerland (+1) 7.United Kingdom(-2) 8.Denmark (+2) 9.Germany (0) 10.Sweden (-2) 23.United States (+2) 69.Russia (+1) 71. India (-3) 84.China (-6)


Advanced economies have not


kept up with this shift. This suggests that theymay be missing out on growth opportunities. Prof Pankaj Ghemawat, co-author, argues: “Counteracting this trend would requiremore companies in advanced economies to boost their capacity to tap into faraway growth.” The index highlights the


importance of expanding global supply chains to economic growth. In fact,Deutsche Post DHL chief Frank Appel says: “I amconvinced that a prosperous world needsmore, not less integration.” Nevertheless, important


lessons have been learnt over the past five years about the problems of trying tomanage supply chains that extend across continents.That knowledgewill be vital to future supply chain globalisation. Malory Davies.


Transport prices fall across Europe


Transport prices fell by 0.6 per cent in the third quarter of 2014 compared to the second quarter of 2014, according to the twenty-first edition of the TransportMarketMonitor (TMM) by Transporeon and Capgemini Consulting. When comparing to the index level of the


previous year (index 100.0), the third quarter of 2013, we see that the price index is also 0.6 per cent lower. In the third quarter of 2014, the diesel index


decreased to an index 101.0 (-0.5 per cent). and thus proves to remain fairly stable over three quarters. Despite the strong summer dip, the transport index reached the highest level of the year in September. The capacity index recovered from78.9 in the


second quarter of 2014 to index 86.6 (+9.8 per cent) in the third quarter. The TransportMarketMonitor is published


quarterly to track transport market dynamics. The indices in theMonitor are based on the logistics platformTransporeon, on which shippers tender and process their transport needs to their preferred transport partners on a daily basis. The


platformhandles a yearly transport volume of over €2 billion across Europe. Erik van Dort, supply chain director at


Capgemini notes: “For the fifth year in a row August showed a clear dip in transport prices. Remarkable is that at an equal capacity compared to last year, the price was considerably lower than last year and all previous four years in August. However, September brought a strong recovery of transport prices, bringing them to the highest level of the year at 102.4.” Peter Förster, managing director of


Transporeon, added: “The increase of transport prices in September is remarkable, since the diesel price index reached its lowest point of the year. It seems that currently other factors are having a higher influence on the transport price development than the diesel price” Overall, it seems apparent that transport prices


are reflecting the fact that economically, much of Europe remains in the doldrums. So does the rise in September suggest an improvement. Only time will tell. Malory Davies.


December 2014 Supply Chain Standard


www.supplychainstandard.com


Good times ahead – if you’ve got the staff


shape than before the recession. The bi-annual Index, commissioned by Barclays


B


andMoore Stephens, surveyed over one hundred senior decision-makerswithin logistics businesses in July and August. And although it has dipped slightly on a year


again,more than half the respondents think the market is stronger than sixmonths ago – and almost half expecting themto improve further. Half of those surveyed expect to increase


headcountwhile only 11 per cent are looking at reducing numbers. However, there are problems. Pressure on margins is still a challenge, and the problemof


usiness conditions are improving, according to the latestUKLogisticsConfidence Index. Not only that, four out of five senior decision makers believe the industry is nowin better


recruitment is all too apparent. In recentweeks a number of industry leaders have spoken out about driver shortages and there have beenwarnings of bare shelves at Christmaswithout action. The report points out that the logistics sector


currently employs around eight per cent of theUK workforce, butwill need an additional 650,000 workers between nowand 2020 tomeet its needs. However, there is simply not enough newtalent


coming into the industry, according to the respondents. And the report suggests thatwhile some logistics companies are committed to funding and arranging training, there aremany that are not. Perhaps the keymessage here is that theremaywell be good times ahead, butwithout enough trained staff a company is not going to see the benefit. MaloryDavies.


Pic: Highways Agency


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