Sourcing Around Russia, With Love

With all the talk of logistical build-out in China -- and the logistical woes of India, Vietnam and other emerging global sourcing locales -- it would be easy to overlook the massive infrastructure investment going on in Russia at the moment. I recently came across an article in Cargo News Asia that highlights some of projects underway. According to the piece, "new port terminals are being built and private sector investment is pouring into rail transport as Russia realizes that the rapid growth in freight is a major burden for the creaking transport infrastructure ... The Russian situation can be compared to that of China, where any port, airport or piece of land with logistics park potential is seeing heavy investment." Russia indeed can be a low cost country in certain categories (e.g., aluminum). The country has a long history of providing differentiated products thanks to facilities, capabilities and expertise that were born in the Cold War. And now that it will be easier to get products to port and onto the water, Russia might prove even more attractive from a global sourcing perspective.

- Jason Busch