International trade has long supported rising incomes and living standards. But recent disruptions have revealed the need to enhance the resilience and security of global supply chains. The OECD Supply Chain Resilience Review stresses that effective risk management, not retreating from trade, is essential. Resilience requires public, private, and international cooperation, and policy frameworks that are agile, adaptable, and aligned to help firms and governments respond to complex global challenges.
Resilient supply chains
Global supply chains face mounting pressures. Geopolitical tensions, natural disasters, regulatory uncertainty, and economic volatility are disrupting trade flows and reshaping the global trade policy landscape. These challenges are prompting governments and businesses to take action to strengthen supply chain resilience, without turning to protectionist or beggar-thy-neighbour measures. The core challenge is balancing economic security and long-term prosperity with the benefits of open markets and a rules-based international trading system. Governments are increasingly expected to play a strategic role in safeguarding critical supply chains. Close co-ordination with the private sector will be essential to deliver effective and sustainable solutions.
Key messages
The OECD’s policy toolkit for resilient supply chains equips policymakers with practical tools to guide decision-making across key areas of supply chain resilience. While governments do not directly manage supply chains, they play a crucial enabling role, supporting business efforts by fostering a stable, transparent, and predictable policy environment in which supply chains can thrive.
The OECD tracks global trade interdependencies to help identify and address vulnerabilities in critical supply chains, especially those essential for the green transition. This work, led by the OECD Trade Committee, supports the development of competitive, resilient, and sustainable markets.
National governments set the regulatory conditions in which businesses operate. When well-designed, these frameworks can enable private sector efforts to build more resilient supply chains. Closer co-operation between public and private actors, supported by timely, efficient information exchange, helps firms better anticipate and respond to disruptions.
By contributing data and insights into how supply chains function, the private sector plays a vital role in shaping policies that are responsive to real-world challenges. The OECD’s Forum for Critical Supply Chains brings together stakeholders from both sectors to advance shared solutions for greater resilience.
Context
Relocalising supply chains can come at a high economic cost
OECD modelling shows that efforts to relocalise supply chains could decrease global trade by over 18% and reduce global real GDP by more than 5%. Yet, these measures do not consistently improve resilience. In fact, GDP volatility increased in more than half of the economies modelled, challenging claims that relocalisation is inherently more stable.
Most global trade remains diversified, but import concentration is on the rise
Only about 30% of global exports are overly concentrated in a few trading partners, suggesting most trade flows are still relatively well diversified. However, data show a concerning 50% rise in excessive import concentration globally in the early 2020s compared to late 1990s levels, a trend that could increase vulnerability to external shocks. This rise is nearly entirely driven by non-OECD countries as average excessive import concentration in OECD countries has remained relatively stable.
Leadership dialogue highlights public-private collaboration on supply chain resilience
At the OECD Forum on Critical Supply Chains in 2024, Marion Jansen, Director of Trade and Agriculture, underscored the vital role of public-private collaboration in identifying vulnerabilities and strengthening the resilience of global supply chains.
The 2025 version of the Forum comprised one day on medical supply chains (‘MEDICON’) on May 15 and one day on agri-food supply chains on May 16.
