Exporting firms have better control over the challenges to international trade. 55 percent of companies indicate that they can fully or largely handle purchase orders. In May it was just 43 percent. All this with an almost regular flow. 25 percent of companies had more orders than last year; 24 percent of exporters have low demand. Long delivery times remain a major problem for 58 percent of respondents. However, this is significantly lower than in the May screen (73 percent). Staff costs continue to rise. This is evidenced by the July observer for International Trade and Logistics for the Entrepreneur Association Evofenedex and credit insurance company Atradius.
“We are seeing some relief in parts of the supply chain, with a trend towards less logistical disruption,” said Bart-Jan Koopman, Director of evofenedex. “This will be due in part to modest weakness on the demand side, but this is not significant yet and costs remain high. Companies and their chains appear to be better able to handle the situation that has arisen. The situation is fragile, with issues such as congestion at ports and disruption to inland shipping due to low levels not helping water.”
Transfer costs
The top 3 disruptions to business operations continue to be shaped by staff shortages (57 percent), raw materials and materials (50 percent) and high energy prices (49 percent). Absenteeism due to illness continues to decline (16 percent). The costs that companies have to pay to employees (both fixed and flexible) continue to rise, due to the effects of the collective labor agreement, additional bonuses for retaining or hiring employees, or to compensate for inflation in the meantime. The percentage of companies that say they (can) afford the costs remains at 50 percent. 27 percent of companies say they employ more people than last year. This means that half of the exporters are unable or unwilling to transfer costs, or not entirely, which would be at the expense of their margins.
Availability of transportation
After all, logistical disturbances regularly occur near the house from afar. Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom were mentioned in particular more often than in May. “It’s hard to get a good picture of this, but we have the impression that it often has to do with the availability of transportation,” Coopman says. “We hear, for example, that inland ships are often mined to transport coal and grain. Inland shipping is important for exporters to get products from the inland factory to the seaport as a more sustainable alternative to land transportation.”
source: ivovenedex
