The non-profit Automotive Industry Action Group is partnering with automotive manufacturing associations representing the states of Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee to assist in accelerating development of the industry's supply base in the South.

DHL is looking to increase the amount of shipping it does for car companies at the pre-launch and launch stages by offering an integrated approach, head of automotive Fathi Tlatli told the Automotive News Europe Congress in Paris.

South and Central America are significant growth markets for retailers with seven countries - Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Peru, Panama, Colombia and Mexico - ranked in the 2013 A.T. Kearney Global Retail Development Index.

Aberdeen Group's new research reveals that 63 percent of 149 companies with predominant global supply chains have ranked supply chain visibility as a high priority for improvement. It also shows that the top 20 percent best-in-class companies claim to be compliant to GS1 Standards and track supply chain visibility at the item level.