North America bucks global supply chain slowdown: GEP index

Global supply chain activity cooled in August, with GEP’s Global Supply Chain Volatility Index slipping to -0.39 from -0.35 in July, pointing to rising spare capacity worldwide.

The slowdown was uneven, with North America an outlier as supply chains ran close to full capacity. Companies stockpiled raw materials and components to hedge against tariff-driven shortages and delivery delays, particularly in the U.S. consumer goods sector.

Asia’s index fell to a three-month low, dragged down by weak purchasing in Japan and Taiwan, while Europe deteriorated further as Germany’s basic materials sector and U.K. manufacturing contracted. Europe’s index reading of -0.90 marked one of the steepest declines since 2024.

“So far tariffs have neither spurred growth nor triggered collapse,” said Michael DuVall, GEP’s global head of supply chain strategy. “Tariff uncertainty is no longer a temporary, it’s a structural reality in the supply chain.”