Sanctions

When cost is no longer king in supply chains

For decades, global supply chains were organized around a near-absolute belief: if cost is optimized, efficiency is optimized. Produce where it is cheapest, ship along the fastest route, keep inventories lean and deliver just in time - that was the winning formula of accelerated globalization. However, the current situation has raised a very fundamental question:

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NCD Convention: A New Boost for Trade Finance and Inland Logistics Corridors

NCD Convention: A New Boost for Trade Finance and Inland Logistics Corridors

In global trade, sea routes and traditional bills of lading have long enjoyed a privileged position in the world of trade finance. Sea‑borne cargo benefits from negotiable bills of lading, and banks are familiar with their function as documents of title, making it relatively straightforward to use goods in transit as collateral for loans, letters of credit or supply‑chain finance structures.

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Scope 3 & Verified Data: What Standard Is Strong Enough to “Stand in Court”?

Scope 3 & Verified Data: What Standard Is Strong Enough to “Stand in Court”?

The pressure to disclose value chain emissions (Scope 3), along with the requirement to verify supplier sustainability, is increasing rapidly. The pressing questions are: which measurement methods are reliable enough, and what data platforms are robust enough to withstand audits and comply with tightening regulations?

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Multi-Sourcing & Regionalization: The Shield of Supply Chains

Multi-Sourcing & Regionalization: The Shield of Supply Chains

In the context of unpredictable geopolitical shifts, shocks from tariffs, trade sanctions, or security instability can paralyze global supply chains in an instant. That is why the strategy of regionalization combined with multi-sourcing is becoming the new standard. Enterprises must design networks closer to consumption markets, while simultaneously leveraging global capacity and managing make-or-buy decisions at the system-wide level.

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Malaysia Tightens AIS and Anchorage/STS: A Lesson for Fighting Illicit Ship-to-Ship Transfers in the South China Sea

Malaysia Tightens AIS and Anchorage/STS: A Lesson for Fighting Illicit Ship-to-Ship Transfers in the South China Sea

From the start of Q3/2025, a string of signals from Malaysia shows the authorities have moved from “advice” to “tightening” with respect to anchorage and ship-to-ship (STS) transfers in waters under Malaysian jurisdiction.

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Panama Blocks Ships Over 15 Years Old: Raising the Compliance Bar

Panama Blocks Ships Over 15 Years Old: Raising the Compliance Bar

Panama has “closed the books” on registering oil tankers and bulk carriers more than 15 years old. Experts say this move is aimed at blocking the “shadow fleet,” lifting the compliance bar, and signaling what Vietnamese businesses need to prepare for.

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From Oil Sanctions to Container Shipping: “Red Lines” of Compliance for Vietnamese Businesses

From Oil Sanctions to Container Shipping: “Red Lines” of Compliance for Vietnamese Businesses

Over the past three years, the maritime world has operated within a “new risk band”: from the G7’s oil price cap to crackdowns on the “shadow fleet” carrying Iranian and Russian oil. What changed in 2024–2025 is that sanctions are no longer confined to tankers; enforcement has been “spilling over” into the container supply chain via AIS monitoring, rules on anchorage/ship-to-ship (STS) transfers, insurance paperwork, legal attestations, and partner screening.

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The Sanctions Trap in Maritime Shipping – From Oil to Containers

The Sanctions Trap in Maritime Shipping – From Oil to Containers

Sanctions once targeted oil tankers have now expanded into the container shipping industry. This shift has unwittingly created a new legal punch, full of risk. It’s no longer just a matter of cargo; it’s a test of logistics chain governance in a deeply globalized and politicized world.

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AI, ESG, and Geopolitics: Three Pillars Shaping the Future of Supply Chains

AI, ESG, and Geopolitics: Three Pillars Shaping the Future of Supply Chains

A recent survey by consultancy firm Gartner reveals three key factors that are and will continue to profoundly impact supply chains over the next decade: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Environmental–Social–Governance (ESG) standards, and geopolitical dynamics. While AI offers a powerful push toward digitalization, ESG and geopolitics pose complex challenges for adaptability and resilience.

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Strategies to Mitigate the Impact of Tariffs on Supply Chains

Strategies to Mitigate the Impact of Tariffs on Supply Chains

Businesses today face significant challenges due to the imposition of tariffs. Changes in trade policies between nations can increase production costs, affect product pricing, and directly impact a company’s profitability.

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U.S. Imposes New Tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China Starting February 1, 2025

U.S. Imposes New Tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China Starting February 1, 2025

Trump Administration’s Latest Trade Move to Curb Immigration and Drug Trafficking. Starting February 1, 2025, the United States will officially implement a 25% tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico, along with a 10% tariff on goods from China.

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Buil trust to link supply chain

Buil trust to link supply chain

In the time of globalization, the need to link among enterprises to share information and to cooperate for mutual development is a popular trend today. Supply chain linkage requires members in the chain to closely cooperate in sharing information, sharing interests and risks to increase the supply chain values. Supply chain linkage require its members to build mutual trust, otherwise it will fail.

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A dispute about a lien on cargo

A dispute about a lien on cargo

Not in all cases shipowners have the right to exercise a lien on cargo for hire even if they are the victims of fraud to carry illegal cargo as in the dispute below for readers’ reference.

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Focusing on removing logistics infrastructure "bottleneck"

Focusing on removing logistics infrastructure "bottleneck"

Logistics infrastructure- the lifeblood of an economy. A logistics infrastructure developed in the direction of synchronicity and modernization will make cargo flows to markets faster, thus save costs and increase enterprises’ competition abilities.

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Improving intellectual property protection in Vietnam

Improving intellectual property protection in Vietnam

(VLR) (Vietnam Logistics Review) The fact that the U.S are in preparation to investigate China trade and China warned a trade war with the U.S coming from accusations of pirating and violating intellectual property which resulted in the U.S business’ loss of USD 600bn annually, equally to 3% of the total GDP of the U.S. China has been considered a chief offender. The information warned us about an important issue which is normally neglected in Vietnam.

Thời sự - Logistics