NXTPoint Logistics delivers flexible supply chain solutions spanning distribution, warehousing and fulfillment, managed FF&E logistics, domestic and international transportation, and final mile delivery. Our passionate team provides tailored, customer-focused solutions that enable our clients, both large and small, to achieve their business goals by leveraging comprehensive 3PL services, market-leading technology and deep vertical industry expertise. With over 35 facilities, 4.5 million square feet of warehouse space and an extensive partner network, NXTPoint Logistics offers the broad capabilities and reach of a large 3PL company while maintaining its commitment to being the most flexible and responsive partner in the industry.
Preparing for What’s Next: Top Risks Facing Supply Chains in 2026
Introduction If supply chain companies have learned anything from the disruptions that have taken place in 2025, it is that things rarely go as planned. Supply chains are growing increasingly complex by the day, leaving companies struggling to predict the next big shift that will threaten their operations and margins. Everything from geopolitical instability to cyber attacks and maritime shipping disruptions in the Red Sea have forced companies to re-think their operations and find ways to minimize the impacts. However, for many companies, the impact of new tariffs likely overshadows all of these events due to their scope and how frequently they appear to be shifting. As Q4 is underway, most companies are now working on their operational planning for 2026 and developing strategies to help offset many of the changes that the industry has seen this year while bracing for what lies ahead. While no one can predict the next big threat, companies can work to understand the greatest risks facing their supply chains as they prepare for 2026 to help reduce their exposure and create more flexibility to withstand what’s to come. In this white paper, we break down the top threats to supply chains in the coming year, the types of disruptions that companies may face as a result, and how to best position themselves to be as resilient as possible, no matter what issues may strike.
Preparing for a New Normal If there has been a theme for supply chains in 2025, “chaos” likely sums it up. According to RapidRatings , 81 percent of companies have been impacted by disruptions over the last two years, and 62 percent still believe the risk level is “high to very high.” Many of the disruptions that have plagued companies this year will continue and will likely become amplified in 2026. While some of them are unpredictable in their scope and timing and will require companies to simply react as best they can, others are becoming part of a new normal that companies must accept and strategically plan for in order to maintain profitability. The ability to adapt to these challenges and prepare for their long-term implications will be key to surviving the disruptions. However, results from a Gartner survey reveal that companies need to work on five key characteristics to remain competitive: agility, resilience, regionalization, integrated ecosystems and integrated enterprise strategy. However, less than 30 percent of supply chains have developed in at least three of these five areas, meaning that most companies are simply not ready to withstand what the future holds. As we look toward next year, understanding the greatest potential threats to supply chains will be critical in helping companies create strategies to stay ahead of the curve. In the following pages, we break down the top 10 greatest risks facing supply chains as we prepare to enter 2026.
81% of companies have been impacted by supply chain disruptions in the last two years -Gartner
1. Geopolitical Instability and Shifting Trade Policies
Flexibility is the name of the game for supply chains heading into 2026, especially in today’s unpredictable environment. Working to diversify suppliers and the regions where goods or materials are sourced can help companies hedge against price increases, and building flexible contracts with partners can allow for greater adaptability in challenging conditions by giving them the ability to pivot as needed to accommodate changes in demand.
Both domestic and international tensions have led to increasing volatility for supply chains, with wars, trade disputes, instability with key trading partners and even domestic unrest, labor strikes and policy uncertainty making it difficult to forge a solid path forward. For maritime shipping, the Red Sea crisis has forced companies to resort to much longer routes to avoid potential attacks, and air cargo demand is waning in large part due to tensions between the U.S. and China. Meanwhile, rail and intermodal operators are navigating the impacts of mergers and tariffs on major imports of steel, lumber and grain, while trucking companies are being forced to slash costs and right-size capacity to remain competitive in a soft market. As a result, many companies are seeking alternative sourcing to lower their financial burdens, with re-routing and nearshoring becoming increasingly prevalent. Exploring these strategies and making investments in more flexible solutions will be the key to building more agile and resilient supply chains in 2026. 2. Inflation, Rising Costs and Economic Uncertainty Supply chains face multiple layers of risk in increasingly expensive and uncertain environments, which can impact everything from operational costs and insurance premiums to their ability to create accurate forecasts for the business. These issues become further exacerbated in a low-margin environment as profits are squeezed by the everyday cost of materials, labor, energy, fuel and shipping rates.
3. Disruptions Due to Delays and Capacity Issues
Any number of preventable or unexpected disturbances can result in port congestion or capacity issues, which can impact key shipping and transport lanes and paralyze supply chains. For example, the pandemic saw massive import demand in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, resulting in a peak backlog of 150 container ships, which took more than two years to fully clear and resulted in lengthy delays for companies looking to deliver goods to their customers. In addition, lanes impacted by wars or political unrest often lead companies to re-route vessels (as we’ve seen with the Red Sea attacks), resulting in significant delays and added fuel and insurance costs. Creating redundancies, contingency plans and multi- modal transport strategies can help companies brace against uncertainty and provide peace of mind that they will have a clear path forward, even if disaster strikes. Utilizing the latest data and visibility tools may also help to detect any shifts in demand or capacity early so they can respond quickly.
4. Regulatory and Compliance Risks With constantly shifting tariffs altering the rules of trade and customs requirements, companies face significant headwinds in keeping up with the changes and ensuring their processes and operations are agile enough to respond accordingly. In addition, they must stay up to date with changing regulatory requirements that may impact environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting. Particularly as it relates to customs and regulatory compliance, companies can face significant financial penalties for failing to comply with new rules, in addition to major delays in the shipping process, which can impact the customer experience and harm the brand’s reputation. While it can be challenging to constantly monitor policy shifts to avoid fines and delays, the cost of actually making supply chain updates to maintain compliance can also be high — not to mention the strain on internal resources that must be pulled away from their primary responsibilities. For many companies, working with a trusted logistics partner can remove the uncertainty and internal burden of managing these changes while providing peace of mind that compliance will be maintained. Whether handling these processes internally or outsourcing them to a partner, maintaining constant communication and having standard procedures in place for teams to efficiently and effectively implement any necessary changes to remain compliant will be key to avoiding fines and delays while keeping supply chains on track. 5. Supplier Risk and Lack of Visibility With complex supply chains come high levels of risk and multiple points of potential failure, making it critical for all of these areas to be identified and continuously monitored in order to prevent issues and delays. Upstream failures like factory shutdowns or material shortages can greatly impact and delay operations downstream, so communication and visibility into the entire process are essential. While vetting suppliers to determine reliability is key, even the best ones can be prone to issues like labor shortages or unanticipated disasters. Maintaining frequent communication and avoiding overreliance
on a single supplier can help to mitigate risk and plan for contingencies if the unexpected occurs. As an additional safeguard, companies should ensure they have proper visibility technology implemented to gain insight throughout the process and stay informed about any changes that may occur. While communication breakdowns can happen, having end-to-end visibility tools in place can help to identify potential issues before they become major threats and allow time to reconfigure operations, if needed. 6. Natural Disasters and Climate Change While the timing of wildfires, hurricanes, floods and more is generally unpredictable, companies can be certain that these issues will likely affect their supply chains at some point in time, making it critical to have recovery and response plans in place to act quickly if and when these events occur. While vetting suppliers to determine reliability is key, even the best ones can be prone to issues like labor shortages or unanticipated disasters.
(resulting in financial theft), phishing, identity theft, email or virus attacks and more. With so much on the line, companies simply can’t afford to ignore these threats, as even a single stolen load can be debilitating. Fortunately, companies can take a number of steps to prevent fraud: Utilize trusted carrier databases and cross-check carrier identity with official sources like the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) . Always verify email addresses and locations of carriers that contact you against official industry sources. Know the red flags, which can include suspicious documents, inconsistent branding, bad grammar, strange email addresses, last-minute changes or requests, unwillingness by a carrier to provide proof of insurance, and requests to change pickup or delivery dates and instructions. Educate and train staff on what to look for to ensure diligent follow-up when questions arise. Work exclusively with vetted carriers and brokers. Enhance security with technology to track loads, verify documents, etc. Verify payment details directly by phone, and use two- factor authentication for payment approvals. Beware if a carrier or broker attempts to change payment information mid-contract. With the right tools and partners in place, this growing threat doesn’t have to create an unnecessary burden for your supply chain.
When developing a response strategy, start with the areas most prone to incidents, such as coastal ports or regions that are most vulnerable to wildfires or flooding. Create alternate transportation routes and warehousing plans as a backup, and assign responsibilities so that key staff understand their roles in the event of an emergency. Diversifying suppliers and creating redundancies can also help to keep supply chains moving due to added flexibility. Technology and data can also play a key role in helping companies detect and respond early to potential threats through predictive analytics, allowing organizations to stay as informed as possible to initiate an efficient response to any incidents that arise. 7. Demand Volatility Certain times of the year, such as peak season, come with increased demand and can be planned for, while others, such as the unprecedented demand surge that occurred during the pandemic, can catch companies off guard and lead to lengthy stockouts for many products. Having a responsive inventory and warehousing strategy can help companies to avoid having too little or too much of a product on hand while providing flexibility to respond to sudden shifts. Consumer behavior, seasonal patterns and external disruptions can all create sudden changes in demand that can make or break supply chains. Real-time data can help companies create more responsive inventory strategies, giving them the ability to scale up or down based on what the data indicates and allowing them to restock items faster without holding excess stock. It can also help to ensure continuity in unpredictable conditions, prevent lost sales due to stockouts and make sure customers have access to the products they need when it matters most. 8. Freight Fraud Fraud has become a prominent threat to supply chains, resulting in substantial losses. Cargo theft alone costs the industry up to $35 billion more per year, making it one of the most costly risks to supply chains. Fraud can take many forms for supply chain companies, including cargo theft, double or unlawful brokering
$35 billion+ lost per year due to cargo theft
9. Cybersecurity Threats and Data Breaches
Supply chain organizations manage immense amounts of data, and as companies work to become increasingly digital, the risk of cybersecurity and data breaches are on the rise as well. A 2024 report by BlueVoyant revealed that more than 80 percent of organizations had their supply chains negatively impacted by a negative breach within the previous year. Furthermore, Juniper Research reports that cyberattacks will cost companies nearly $81 billion globally by 2026, underscoring the need for companies to protect their data at any cost. As technology advancements like robotics, AI and cloud services become more prevalent for companies looking to stay ahead of the competition, they also create exponentially more vulnerabilities that leave supply chains exposed to cyberattacks and breaches. That’s why implementing and maintaining security measures, data encryption, compliance and incident response protocols are more important than ever for helping companies to prevent these attacks and respond quickly if they experience them.
10. Technology Integration and System Failures
A system that has been used for decades and “gotten the job done” likely isn’t reliable enough to withstand today’s turbulent and increasingly digital supply chain ecosystem. With visibility being more important than ever when it comes to monitoring supply chains and protecting the customer experience, outdated systems that are prone to error and lack integration capabilities can create bottlenecks and prevent full visibility, costing companies substantial financial losses in the process. Incorporating scalable transportation and warehouse management systems that can be used by or integrate with all partner systems can go a long way in preventing headaches associated with lack of visibility. Working with reliable systems that are not prone to outages and avoiding fragmented systems can also help to prevent gaps in operations and visibility while ensuring that all stakeholders have access to the most accurate and recent data available
Conclusion Resilient Supply Chains Require Proactive Risk Management The complexity of today’s global supply chains means that traditional, reactive approaches to risk mitigation are no longer enough. In order to ward off the greatest threats and ensure companies are positioned to effectively navigate today’s environment, it is critical for organizations to adopt proactive, end-to-end risk management strategies that are informed by data, empowered by technology and deeply engrained within the teams that keep supply chains moving forward. While the risks are great, opportunity still abounds. Companies that invest in their risk management strategies today will not only be better prepared to respond to future disruptions when they occur, but they will also be better positioned to outperform the competition in times of uncertainty. If you are unsure of where to begin when developing a risk management strategy, working with a 3PL partner can help bring real-time visibility, scalability and deep industry expertise to help you understand the greatest risks to your business, where you need to diversify and how to reduce your exposure so that when the unexpected happens, you know how to respond. At NXTPoint Logistics , we work with partners every day to create tailored approaches to their supply chain operations so they can anticipate, adapt to and navigate disruptions. Leveraging data and technology, we work to create flexible strategies that position our partners for success while addressing any potential points of failure before they become an issue. While disruptions cannot be avoided altogether, having the right tools and strategies in place can turn risks into opportunities. In the end, flexibility, resilience, agility and proactive risk management strategies will separate the winners from those who lag behind.
While disruptions cannot be avoided altogether, having the right tools and strategies in place can turn risks into opportunities.
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