ART Logistics, a leading project logistics company focused on Central Asia, Russia and the CIS, has launched a twice-monthly less-than-truckload service connecting Europe to Mongolia.

According to a survey of 600 manufacturing and retail executives conducted by Deloitte, 71 percent of the executives surveyed view supply chain risk as "an important factor in their companies' strategic decision making, including 20 percent who view it as extremely important." Yet, 42 percent of the executives from large companies said their supply chain risk management programs are only somewhat or not effective.

Global logistics giant Kuehne + Nagel have announced the restructuring of their European operations in the first step of a "comprehensive programme for increases in efficiency". In an online statement released on their website, KN explained it will optimize its regional structure beginning July 2013, beginning by merging the current organisational units of central Europe, northwest Europe and southwest Europe into one central region.

Three of South Africa's biggest supermarket chains have moved to reassure the public that their meats are safe after news that top local researchers had found "fraudulent meat products" across the country.

American International Group (AIG) has introduced a new product under its NextGen Protection family to address requirements of transportation and logistics industry. Over £73 million has been awarded from Round 2 of the Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative (AMSCI) to 12 national supply chain projects, and a further £140 million will be invested by business.

PrimeRevenue Inc., creator of a hosted platform for global supply-chain finance, has released version 5.5 of its OpenSCi SCiSupplier platform.

Four of the busiest airports in the country will get tightened cargo security this year to enhance screening of dangerous items, a move that raises concerns from business people who say the extra measure will make the current "slow" service even less efficient.

The current British politicians representing the transport sector certainly seem to be putting themselves out again this month with ministerial visits to two of the country's major container shipping ports, a leading logistics park and the launch of a new scheme to place ex-forces personnel into work in the freight and logistics sectors.