Southeast Asia will be the most attractive relocation destination, with 13.6 per cent of respondents and stating their companies will move production or sourcing activities there. It was followed by India (13.4 per cent).

Seventeen per cent of the respondents have already moved production and sourcing activities and have chosen China as their alternative destination.

Supply chains for products like furniture, apparel and household goods will be relatively easy to diversify because the inputs are relatively easy to obtain.

Agility Logistics is a global supply chain services and infrastructure company headquartered in Kuwait.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power many in the global community hoped that he would reduce barriers to international trade. However his policy response has been to raise duties further to encourage global suppliers to establish Indian operations.

There are some that fear the impact which the entry of multinational corporations into the Indian market would have on small businesses, in particular retailers. The risk is, as the world approaches a period of sustained economic downturn, that a neo-protectionist regime will isolate India further from globalised supply chains rather than integrate within them, the survey found.

A global recession is certain or likely in 2023, says 66.4 per cent of the respondents. This number increased by 6 percentage points in December compared to October. The forecast comes amidst sharp growth slowdowns across the largest economies.

The Ukraine-Russia war is having broad implications for global businesses—it has triggered an increase in business costs among 30 per cent of the surveyed companies, whilst 29 per cent saw an increase in logistics costs.

More than half of respondents have committed to a net zero target, but around a third haven’t set a net zero target deadline.

Innovation and technological development is the most important driver of economic diversification in the Gulf countries. Saudi Arabia has the potential to become a digital and innovation-based economy, the survey found. It will spend $24.7 billion on technology by 2025. This is reportedly the highest government spending on technology in the world.

The country is investing $6.4 billion in future technologies and start-ups. By 2025, the digital economy is expected to contribute over 19 per cent of the GDP of Saudi Arabia.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)