Lars Karlsson: CapacityNow

I just arrived to Brussels. We lived here six years more than a decade ago.

Intersting meetings in Brussels and Antwerp.

I have had an interesting last week with important meetings with U.S Agencies and some other key stakeholders in United States over the last days.

We have already seen tariffs actievely used as an instrument for trade policy as well as in more general policy negotiations, as between U.S and Colombia this weekend.

While ’Tariff is the most beautiful word in the world’ echoes over the global trade environment, it is two other words that will make or break global supply chains and integrated value chains this year: ’trade compliance’ is what we need to get in place to stay in business. There is no time to waste – do it now. 

We have not had a more complex and complicated situation for world trade in many decades. Trade wars, tariffs, sanctions and ESG regulations are all making trade compliance a license to play. 

My meetings this week has not only comfirmed these trends, but in fact what I have learned has re-inforced the seriousness and urgency in my call-out to international trade to get ready. What I heard was an echo from the future. 

Companies that change the way they look at trade compliance have still a chance to become winners. 

This is just the beginning. Enforcement of these new supply chain, multi-tier challanges will graudally increase and accelerate going forward, with draconic penalties and market access blocking mechanisms around the corner. This is not going away. It will get worse.

My job right now is to raise awareness with our customers and everybody in international trade to prepare and to do it quickly. 

Companies need to map all supply chain stakeholders end-to-end and do the risk assessment as soon as possible. Change pattners when necessary. Own your processes. 

These are my recommendations:

• Own your customs and trade data – make sure that you can access it at any time
• Develop a new trade compliance strategy – you will need it urgently, 
• Find a multi-purpose and multi-country trade compliance platform solution – nothing else will work with demanded quality, suprvised risk level and cost-efficient, and 
• Select your partners wisely. 

This stands clear, 2025 will be the year of trade compliance for international trade. And so will 2026 to 2030….The red light is on. I don’t want to say a few years from now – I told you so. 

Happy International Customs Day! 🌍 Customs play a pivotal role in shaping the future of global trade, and this year’s theme, “Customs Delivering on Efficiency, Security, and Prosperity”, resonates deeply with our commitment to improving global supply chains.

With our Product Passport for Goods solution, set to launch this year, we’re working to streamline customs processes, making them more efficient and secure, while opening up new possibilities for businesses around the world. By leveraging digital tools, we aim to simplify compliance, reduce delays, and drive greater prosperity in global trade for us partners.
 
To stay up-to-date in the latest Customs news, visit: https://lnkd.in/dBZEh-Fc