All posts by Supply Chain Expert

A shifting world demands a new kind of resilience, and Europe is making its move. We break down Ursula von der Leyen’s Davos roadmap for strategic independence—how an expansive trade network, deep internal reforms, and a modern defense base aim to turn global shocks into lasting advantage. We start with the EU’s global trade offensive: Mercosur’s path to the world’s largest free trade zone, fresh agreements with Mexico, Indonesia, and Switzerland, and active negotiations with Australia, the …

A remote island just became the hottest fault line in transatlantic politics. We unpack how Greenland moved from a frozen afterthought to the center of a standoff featuring tariff threats, NATO friction, and a hard turn toward transactional foreign policy. Along the way, we trace the strategic stakes: melting sea ice opening seasonal shipping lanes, dual-use infrastructure from Pituffik Space Base to Arctic ports, and the tightening competition among the United States, Russia, and a self-decl…

A ten-minute clash in a wood-paneled room still echoes through today’s trade fights. We revisit the notorious Cambridge encounter between Ludwig Wittgenstein and Karl Popper and translate their opposing philosophies into a practical playbook for global commerce, supply chain resilience, and smarter economic policy. Instead of picking a side, we show how clarity and experimentation can work together to cut through noise and deliver results. We start by unpacking why so many trade arguments ar…

Warships in the Caribbean, seized tankers on the evening news, and a freight quote that jumped overnight—this is how a regional crisis becomes a global supply chain problem. We break down the U.S.–Venezuela confrontation and trace its spillover from oil fields to ocean lanes to your operating budget. We start with the trigger points: tightened U.S. controls on Venezuelan crude, sanctions that complicate financing and insurance, and reported strikes that raise security risks around key ports….

What if one out of every four dollars in the global economy moves in the dark? We pull back the curtain on the shadow economy—its staggering size, where it thrives, and why it quietly reshapes taxes, wages, prices, and trust. From cash-only construction crews and informal hospitality work to trillion-dollar counterfeit flows, we connect the macro numbers to everyday choices that erode margins for honest firms and endanger consumers. We ground the conversation with region-by-region clarity: t…

We kick off 2026 with a clear promise: stay informed and stay ahead on global trade, supply chain advantage, and policy. Short, focused guidance to set your edge for the year with a simple ask to subscribe so you never miss timely insights. • what supply chain advantage means for 2026 • why staying informed beats chasing headlines • practical habits to stay ahead week by week • policy awareness across trade, carbon, and compliance • commitment to clear, timely updates for listeners Subscrib…

Trade didn’t just wobble in 2025—it rebalanced around power, policy, and materials. We trace how sweeping U.S. tariffs set off global retaliation, why price shocks hit cars and chips harder than couture, and how rare earths turned from invisible ingredients into geopolitical leverage. Along the way, we unpack China’s end-to-end grip on mining, refining, and magnet manufacturing, and the precise export controls that rippled through defense, EVs, drones, and semiconductors. We also explore the…

Jobs aren’t vanishing—they’re evolving fast. We dig into why AI is changing tasks more than it’s replacing roles, which jobs feel the pressure first, and how smart upskilling can turn a threat into a career tailwind. From clerical and entry-level analyst work to creative and care professions, we map the real exposure and explain where human judgment, empathy, and critical thinking still anchor value. Beyond the workplace, we zoom out to the forces bending global trade. The Russia–Ukraine war…

Prices keep rising, lead times keep slipping, and yet global trade is still on track to break records. We dig into that paradox and make sense of a year where supply chains fought on multiple fronts: tariffs compounding at every border, inventories ballooning, and returns threatening to swallow margins. I walk through the latest data showing trade flows surpassing 35 trillion dollars in 2025 and why the Q4 slowdown signals a tougher landscape in 2026. From the shop floor to the boardroom, th…

Old ideas never really vanish; they take new shapes, get new champions, and quietly steer the rules we live by. We open the vault on Keynes, mercantilism, and the intellectual currents that still drive modern trade, monetary policy, and the supply chains that bind our lives together. Along the way, we revisit the Irish famine and the Scottish clearances as stark reminders of what happens when conviction outruns care, and why today’s policy theater can still shift costs onto those with the lea…