Connecting to Compete 2012 : Trade Logistics in the Global Economy

This is the third edition of connecting
to compete: trade logistics in the global economy. At its
heart is the Logistics Performance Index (LPI), which the
World Bank has produced every two years since 2007. The LPI
measures on-the-ground trade logistics performance this
year, in 155 countries helping national leaders, key
policymakers, and private sector traders understand the
challenges they and their trading partners face in reducing
logistical barriers to international commerce. Logistics,
organizing the movement of goods over time and space, has
evolved from its 19th century military roots to today's
international supply chains. As the backbone of
international trade, logistics encompasses freight
transportation, warehousing, border clearance, payment
systems, and many other functions. These functions are
performed mostly by private service providers for private
traders and owners of goods, but logistics is also important
for the public policies of national governments and regional
and international organizations. The LPI provides a simple,
global benchmark to measure logistics performance, filling
gaps in datasets by providing systematic, cross-country
comparisons. A joint venture of the World Bank, logistics
service providers, and academics, the LPI is built around a
survey of logistics professionals. By asking freight
forwarders to rate countries on key logistics issues such as
customs clearance efficiency, infrastructure quality, and
the ability to track cargo it captures a broad set of
elements that affect perceptions of the efficiency of trade
logistics in practice.