กรุงเทพฯ--12 มิ.ย.--Grayling
Raj Subramaniam, Executive Vice President, Global Strategy, Marketing and Communications, FedEx Services MINT.
Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria, Turkey. Or maybe it’s CIVETS. Colombia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Turkey, South Africa. Either way, for anyone engaged in international business, ‘CIVETS’ and ‘MINT’ are both increasingly shorthand for taking the long view. Rich with possibilities, these young, vibrant new economies are just starting to flex their muscles, but by 2050 they are projected to make up many of the top 20 contributors to global GDP.
It is fascinating to scout the potential of these new markets, especially for someone like me who has worked across a number of regions with FedEx. I am curious and interested as to which direction these new markets will move.
Take Asia Pacific, where next to China, Vietnam and Indonesia are leading growth in intra-Asia regional trade.[1] Vietnam and Indonesia typify the strength that nearly all MINT and CIVETS countries share: proximity to a huge market full of potential buyers, abundant natural resources and commodities to sell, as well as a young and increasingly well-educated population that is eager to work, and has money to spend. They are also better connected – both physically and virtually – to the world market.
While internet penetration varies between and within markets, emerging economies are the principal drivers of today’s growth in global internet take-up. For example, internet usage in Nigeria and Vietnam grew from 200 thousand users in 2000 to over 48 million and 31 million users respectively in 2012. This kind of change is opening up an abundance of opportunity, providing access to information and a vehicle for commerce. It is allowing businesses of all sizes – from established multi-nationals to budding entrepreneurs – to enter and participate in the world marketplace.
But the internet cannot stand alone. For these new markets to continue down a successful path, the right physical infrastructure must be in place to support meaningful connections among the businesses in that market to consumers all over the world. FedEx stands at the intersection of physical and informational infrastructure required for global commerce. We fully advocate the development of infrastructure in these emerging economies, whether it is the “hard” infrastructure of roads, bridges, ports, airports, power, and internet access, or the soft infrastructure such as liberalization of trade policy, and an advanced educational environment.
The right investments will yield bright futures for these economies, and the role they can play in the global marketplace, especially when you consider that demographic dividend mentioned earlier. A lot of these markets will have a younger population for a long time, supporting a great new labor force and consuming class. But markets need to support that population with employment, business and educational opportunities.
FedEx continues to invest in new economies through acquisition and organic growth. FedEx was the first express carrier to enter the Chinese market in 1984. In 2007, FedEx became a wholly foreign-owned enterprise and launched the domestic services in China. Most recently, FedEx commenced operations at its new North Pacific Regional Hub, located in Osaka, Japan. The hub will allow customers within the Asia Pacific, including the likes of Indonesia and Vietnam, to benefit from greater, faster and more reliable access to regional and global trade opportunities.
Today, anyone doing business must keep a sharp eye out for new markets just beginning to thrive. According to the U.S. Commercial Service, 95 percent of the world’s consumers live outside of the United States. That, plus the slow growth of traditional economic powerhouses and increased global connectivity, means newly emerging markets have greater access, and new opportunities to “grab the torch” for their leg of the race for economic prosperity.