Many articles in trade and logistics publications reference the developing supply chain market. But the term may not be familiar to everyone. In its simplest form, the physical supply chain can be summarised as the movement of goods and services, both crossborder and locally, through suppliers, distributors, transporters, storage facilities and retailers participating in the sale and delivery of a particular product.
Today’s supply chain also needs to acknowledge the financial element. At HSBC, this is summarised as the coordination and integration of the physical supply chain to optimise working capital costs as well as reducing or managing financial risks, thus improving profitability and increasing shareholder value.
