Crossbeam, a provider of enterprise network security solutions, found it struggled with meeting same-day and next-day delivery requirements mandated in its service-level agreements, says Jim Curley, director, manufacturing & technical operations. It needed automated export compliance from a company with a global footprint, says John Miller, senior vice president, global business development, Flash Global Logistics.

Half of global trade professionals are optimistic about the global economy in 2012 and nearly three quarters plan to spend at or above 2011 levels, according to The State of Global Trade in 2012, a joint report from global trade intelligence company Panjiva and The Global Sourcing Council, a non-profit organization that fosters dialog on critical issues in global sourcing and supply chain management.

Kuehne + Nagel International AG has created KN PharmaChain, a new service tailored to the needs of the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry.

The efficiencies and cost-containment initiatives that the physical supply chain has seen have not been brought to the financial supply chain by most companies, says Robert Kramer, vice president for working capital solutions at PrimeRevenue. That's unfortunate because there are literally trillions of dollars in accounts receivable in corporate supply chins that can be freed up, he says.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda have announced plans to begin negotiating a free-trade agreement aimed at deepening trade and investment ties between the two nations.

Despite greatly improved safety records in the century since Titanic, the maritime industry faces new challenges driven by the continued growth of worldwide shipping, according to specialist marine insurer Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty.

Manufacturers spend over 23 billion dollars of product revenue on warranty claims in the U.S. alone, and are relentlessly seeking ways to decrease these costs. A new report, IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Warranty Analytics 2012 Vendor Assessment, examines the capabilities and strategies of key vendors of warranty analytics software. The study provides IT buyers and software vendors with a structured review of key market participants: Camstar Systems, Infernotions Technologies, Pegasystems, PTC (4CS), SAP, SAS, Teradata, We Predict, Ltd., and Ubiquiti.