Rising, unpredictable rates give freight forwarders sleepless nights

A DP World study says that the rising and unpredictable freight rates are a challenge for the freight forwarding industry along with geopolitical tensions that are a huge concern for the global supply chain for the next five years. The survey revealed that the freight forwarders are quite upset with the rising freight rates as well as the lack of financing options which is crippling the industry on their way to delivering goods. The freight forwarders who participated in the survey mentioned that inflation is the main challenge, including geopolitical tensions causing major consequences to the business.

Even though the complications are there in freight forwarding, still some of the freight forwarders are positive to overcome these issues with the tools and solutions that offer real-time visibility across the entire supply chain. Freight forwarders believe that with real-time visibility the trade routes can be monitored and this could facilitate the seamless movement of trade around the globe. Around 75% of freight forwarders believe that digitalization can be the best solution to decrease bottlenecks and enhance efficiency. At the freight summit, the experts and innovators came to the conclusion that data can definitely improve connectivity in the global supply chain. Mr. Mike Bhaskaran, Group Chief Operating Officer at DP world mentioned that the unpredictability and uncertainty are making trade a hard nut to crack and it also increases the disconnect at multiple points in the supply chain. He further said that the freight forwarding community through the survey is coming together to mitigate risks and build a more robust future for freight forwarding.

The pandemic has completely disrupted the industry but has provided positivity and has prompted the industry to adopt technology for complete transformation and sustainability for the industry.