In the United States, B2B e-commerce revenue has now more than doubled that of B2C - with $559bn annually in sales - and B2B players that fail to embrace online and mobile as leading channels risk losing market share in the short and medium term, and sustainable competitive advantage in the long-term.

Significant liquidity could be released for supplier companies based in Central Europe through supply chain finance, according to the latest research from Demica. Its new study reveals that such programmes could help unlock combined working capital of more than €16bn for suppliers in Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary in the manufacturing, wholesale and logistics sectors.

Mid-sized manufacturers are optimistic about revenues and employment despite concerns about federal regulations and fiscal policy uncertainties, according to the 12th semi-annual Group Outlook Survey from Prime Advantage, a purchasing group for industrial manufacturers.

In the face of challenging economic headwinds, consumer goods manufacturers have focused on cutting costs and optimizing working capital. Those routes still offer opportunity, but recent analysis indicates that traditional assumptions regarding tradeoffs among costs, inventory and service don't always hold true, and leading companies are using new, customer-centric levers to unlock value. These actions could yield a potential value of nearly $50bn industrywide, according to research conducted by The Boston Consulting Group on behalf of the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA).