LOGISTICS

The logistics sector across BRICS countries is undergoing rapid transformation, spurred by e-commerce growth, infrastructure investment, and regional trade integration. Yet for international corporations, the landscape is marked by operational inefficiencies, regulatory inconsistency, and significant geopolitical and environmental risks. Customs procedures remain opaque and prone to delays, while fragmented regional policies and licensing requirements complicate cross-border movement. Infrastructure gaps—particularly in rail, ports, and cold chain—create cost and reliability issues that undermine the predictability essential to global supply chains.

Over the past five years, major developments have reflected both promise and disruption. In India, the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and ongoing logistics corridor development have improved regional freight efficiency, yet bureaucratic bottlenecks and digital integration remain hurdles. Brazil has seen logistics innovation from companies like Mercado Libre and Amazon, but continues to suffer from poor road infrastructure and regulatory delays at ports. Russia’s logistics network, once a gateway to Eurasian trade, was severely disrupted by sanctions post-2022, with foreign logistics providers like Maersk exiting operations. China’s Belt and Road Initiative has boosted logistics capacity, but the country’s “zero-COVID” policy from 2020–2022 highlighted the fragility of port and warehouse operations under restrictive regimes. South Africa’s port and rail systems have deteriorated due to corruption, mismanagement, and infrastructure vandalism, deeply affecting reliability for exporters and importers.

International logistics players face an increasingly complex operating environment in BRICS, where physical, cyber, and regulatory risks intersect. Disruptions from extreme weather events, political protests, or cybersecurity breaches can cripple operations with limited local recovery capacity. Furthermore, rising ESG compliance standards, including emissions tracking and ethical sourcing, are placing new pressure on logistics networks that are still grappling with legacy inefficiencies. Long-term resilience in BRICS logistics requires a highly localized risk model, strong government relations, and investment in adaptive technology