Almost two thirds of manufacturers say costs associated with transporting goods are impacting manufacturers’ decisions when choosing suppliers and where they supply to.
Research by Barclays Bank revealed that that 65 per cent said cost was influencing their supply chain decision making with a further 11 per cent saying their decisions were being heavily impacted.
Almost two thirds of those surveyed source commodities (41 per cent) or components (20 per cent) for their products from the UK rather than abroad (39 per cent), with over half (53 per cent) producing goods that are sold to the UK end user or used as components in UK production. For those that do source inputs offshore, 32 per cent look to China as a key market, followed by 19 per cent who source from Germany.
Mark Lee, head of manufacturing, Barclays Corporate Banking said: “Self confidence and traditional values of quality appear to be key drivers behind UK manufacturers’ supply chain strategies. For UK manufacturers that are able to fully grasp the opportunities and risks related to global trade, there is undoubtedly a competitive advantage.”
