The ‘friend-shoring’ of supply chains

Abstract

The idea of ‘friend-shoring’ supply chains is gaining purchase among economic policymakers concerned about relying on geopolitical competitors for accessing critical materials and technologies. But policies that have been implemented or are under consideration to shift existing supply chains towards reliance on allies and partners will face several challenges in practice. For example, critical goods are distributed unevenly globally and in a relatively fixed manner, without respect to political considerations. Thus, scarcity and competition for access to resources will serve as a test of international of friendships and whether friend-shoring policies survive their early implementation periods.