The polycrisis-driven disruptions in global supply chains show no signs of abating – and likely won’t for the foreseeable future. That’s the key takeaway from a comprehensive survey conducted by Maersk among its European customer base. The findings reveal that a significant majority of cargo owners expect the current volatile environment to persist for at least another 12 to 24 months.

The survey, which gathered insights from over 900 companies across Europe, highlights the continued strain on supply chains amid geopolitical tensions, shifting trade policies, and tariff uncertainties.

More than 78% of the supply chain professionals surveyed said they anticipate that geopolitical dynamics, trade tariffs, and international trade regulations will impact their operations over the next one to two years. Nearly half (48%) expressed deep concern about the geopolitical climate, and 4 out of 5 recognised supply chain challenges as a factor impacting their business growth.

To counter these challenges, businesses are actively diversifying their sourcing strategies. Three out of four respondents indicated they are either already sourcing from multiple geographies or plan to do so – a notable increase from Maersk’s 2024 survey, where only 53% were considering new sourcing locations. Furthermore,

• 4 out of 5 businesses are strengthening the relationship with their logistics provider and key suppliers,
• 3 out of 5 businesses are investing in supply chain visibility and agility to increase resilience,
• 3 out of 4 businesses said they’re adapting to alternative trade routes.

Waiting and doing nothing is the worst thing cargo owners can do, Lars Karlsson confirms. Maersk’s Global Head of Trade & Customs Consulting knows this from more than four decades’ experience in customs and tariffs. Tariffs stand for the most recent heavy disruption for global trade. Lars Karlsson and Maersk’s global team of 2,700 Maersk customs brokers helped cargo owners across the globe to stay on top of the dynamic developments when the US tariffs hit virtually overnight any possible country.

“That left many supply chain managers without sleep at night,” Lars Karlsson remembers the days and weeks after the US announced its import tariff package to the world in April. “However, with the right tools and partners you can control even such a black swan event,” he continues. “You need to be proactive and become more agile in a geopolitical environment like today. To achieve this, you need full control of your global customs data, have it digitally in one central platform where you can blend it with the data of sudden tariff changes as they happen.”

Recent work of his team has proven that those companies who instantly started to gather their global customs data on the “Maersk Trade and Tariff Studio” platform after the announcement of the US import tariffs in April, have been much better prepared for any following overnight tariff changes than those that took a ‘wait-and-see’ approach.

That tariffs will stay on top of the agenda going forward is strongly supported by the survey’s results. The Top 3 challenges that European businesses expect from evolving geopolitics are:

• 46% of the participants in the survey told Maersk that they expect fluctuations in import and export costs,
• 43% expect increased trade tariffs,
• 40% expect uncertainty in global trade policies.