The pandemic has impacted all parts of the world and every sector of industry. The World Center

The World Trade Center Miami (WTCM) would like to thank everyone who participated in the variety of virtual events held during Miami World Trade Month in May.  Over 20 workshops, seminars and networking events were organized by our local business organizations to promote international trade and business in our community.

For Miami International Airport (MIA), the signing of the US – Morocco Free Trade Agreement signaled the promise of further development and importantly, further facilitation of trade and commerce. Since that nation’s flag carrier airline, Royal Air Maroc (RAM), commenced service to Miami from Casablanca in 2019, trade figures have grown substantially at MIA.  During 2019, two-way air trade between Morocco and Miami grew 37 percent in volume and over 15 percent in value, amounting to $16.6 million in imports and exports, as compared to the previous year. Both imports and exports reveal a healthy mix of commodities both in the manufactured goods and high technologies arenas.  Exports included aeronautical equipment, scientific instruments, industrial and commercial machinery, as well as the presently booming commodities making up the pharmaceutical category of goods. 

Amid the COVID-19 crisis, companies are making both tactical and strategic adjustments to their supply chains that could very well set their path for the next decade or longer. Of course, having a nimble supply chain is an especially important advantage when supplies are harder to come by or when demand spikes or plummets, but such disruptions happen all the time, albeit on a smaller scale. The smartest companies are reworking their supply chains accordingly.

Now, in the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, global supply chains are drawing parallels to the financial companies of 12 years ago -- crippled by an unexpected shock, exposed by flaws in their sophisticated instruments, second-guessed for pushing the public close to panic, diagnosed for a once-in-a-generation overhaul.

During the pandemic, it was shown that one of the major disadvantages of stretched supply chains is that they can easily break at any point. You never know when the logistics department will fail to deliver, and your entire business is affected by it. As a solution to this problem, companies will have to invest their resources into shortening the supply chain and making sure that the merchandise is transported from one end to the other in the shortest period of time.

The pandemic has impacted 75 percent of supply chains for US companies. The supply of essential goods like food and medicine continue to come under heavy pressure and have prompted both policymakers and industry leaders to question the security of relying on a single major supplier, such as China. Instead, many are now looking to bolster supply chains by diversifying across multiple countries and building redundancies into supply networks. According to a recent report by Bristlecone,  by the fourth quarter of 2020 many companies will study consumer behavior pattern and move to digitally optimize their logistics operations while building an online presence. 

Amazon has dominated the COVID-19 news because of its ability to get some medical supplies and the reliance of people on ecommerce to protect them as they shop. It’s been a good time for the company’s financials, with significant increases in sales and secure positioning for its other services. Logistics professionals should look at regional needs and concerns right now.