The concept of globalisation

Globalization is an umbrella term that refers to a series of changes that can be economic,

social, and technological, political, and even cultural. It can have different meanings for
different people and groups. 

For economists, it could be about trade in goods and services. In terms of logistics and
transport, involves movement of goods across borders and by different modes. It can refer
to global capital flows. For sales and marketing, it means new markets and increased
product proliferation. It can also refer to mobility of labor and cross-border migration.

Globalization is by no means something new for companies, consumers, or

countries. International or multinational companies have been around for many decades
selling to us the products and services. Then, what is new? What is different? Well, there are
changes that we have to bear in mind. What seems to be different in the last two decades or
so is that many companies are increasing transformed from multinational to global ones in
the sense that they are not only selling worldwide, but also sourcing, manufacturing,
designing, and numerous other activities that were previously conducted on a regional or
national basis.The second important point to bear in mind is the extent of this
trend. Relevant data and focus is just astonishing. By some estimates, 9 of 10 products we
buy in our local shops come from somewhere outside the general region of our
metropolitan area. Today's global demand is not fully met and satisfied by local supply. This
incredible supply chain storyline is backed up by today's global trade numbers. Transport
accounts for 12% of world trade in commercial services and 20% of distribution services,
including physical distribution.

International trade across countries' borders has increased dramatically in the last few
decades. This means that the global marketplace is highly dependent on global supply
chains to provide the buying and supplying infrastructure that the world has come to
depend on in recent years. The value of good merchandised trade in 2018 was almost $20
trillion. With clothing being the most dynamic product among manufactured goods. China
is the leading merchandise trader while even the least developing countries exported $193
billion of merchandise in 2018.In essence, the incredible growth in world trade observed
over the past decade is driven largely by the effect in the development and implementation
of global supply chains. That's a huge challenge particularly in terms of logistics for the
supply chain of every company. 

Why? Because managing global logistics involves a plethora of countries, and it also usually

comes with a plethora of new difficulties that need to be dealt with
appropriately.However, as the DHL Global Trade Barometer highlights, in the last few years,
there seems to have been a reversal of this trend and protectionism is taking the wind out
of the sails of global trade. What is also happening is that new countries, in addition to the
traditional G7, such as the Emerging 7 or MINT, are increasingly becoming more involved in
global trade and this is expected to add to the current dynamic nature of global supply
chains.