Lara Mujico, Senior Vice President at Proxima Australia

Only 5% of Australian firms can sustain operations between 4-6 months during major supply chain shock

Just over half (51%) of global CEOs surveyed say their businesses are unable to maintain day-to-day operations for over three weeks should a major supply chain shock occur tomorrow. Australia, however, faces the greatest vulnerability with only five per cent of Australian firms able to sustain operations for 4-6 months during disruption, the lowest among all markets surveyed.

This compares to 23% of Singapore firms, 18% of US firms, 10% of German firms, and 8% of UK firms.

More concerning, 21% of Australian businesses can only survive disruption for 1-2 weeks, and 59% would fail within three weeks.

The findings come from Proxima’s, a Bain and Company procurement and supply chain consultancy, 2026 Global Supply Chain Resilience Outlook, based on a survey of 515 CEOs from businesses generating over $500m in revenue across the UK, USA, Australia, Singapore and Germany.

Australia’s supply chain vulnerability and opportunity

Australia’s geographic isolation, extended lead times, and reliance on long-haul supply routes create structural fragility. Yet this vulnerability is also driving strategic opportunity with businesses actively reconsidering supply chain concentration, increasing demand for local and regional sourcing, and building resilience into core operations.

Despite facing the tightest timelines for supply chain recovery, Australian CEOs are taking a disciplined approach to resilience investment. Rather than passing costs to customers, 47% of Australian businesses would fund supply chain resilience through cost-saving measures, the highest proportion among all countries surveyed.

Only 34% would pass costs to consumers, and just under one in five (19%) would accept reduced margin.

To guarantee supply chain resilience, almost three quarters (72%) of global CEOs would accept an uplift of more than 10% on their current third-party supplier costs. Australian CEOs are similarly committed, recognising that supply chain continuity is fundamental to business viability.

“Australian businesses face a unique vulnerability due to geographic isolation and extended lead times,” says Lara Mujico, Senior Vice President at Proxima Australia.

“A supply chain shock that other markets might weather for longer creates a crisis for Australian operations within weeks. But we’re seeing something positive in that businesses are responding with strategic discipline. They’re investing in resilience, building local relationships, and reconsidering concentration risk.

“The challenge is execution speed. Procurement teams are being asked to deliver resilience faster, but internal processes and capability gaps are creating friction. The businesses winning this cycle are those embedding procurement into strategy early, not treating it as a cost-control function.”

Further key findings from the Proxima Global Supply Chain Resilience Outlook include:

• The majority (65%) of Australian firms shared that a two-week disruption to their top three suppliers would put 11-20% of their revenue at risk.
• Australian businesses rank sustainability targets and regulatory requirements (29%) as their greatest supply chain financial challenge, followed by emerging technologies (22%) and climate/extreme weather (16%).
• 38% of Australian businesses experienced supply chain disruption caused by a cyber incident in the past 24 months, yet only 29% have real-time visibility into the cyber risk of their critical suppliers.
• 84% of Australian CEOs say procurement is a blocker to AI adoption, higher than the global average of 78%. Yet AI is delivering measurable value in supplier risk monitoring (53%) and cost modelling (50%).
• Barriers to scaling AI adoption include data quality (43%), skills gaps (36%), and ROI clarity (27%)

Another positive finding was that uncertainty around global supply chains is driving increased demand for local and regional sourcing in Australia with 51% saying protectionist policies increased domestic demand for their products.

“Australian businesses are actively reconsidering geographic concentration, nearshoring to Asia-Pacific, and building supplier relationships in markets with shorter lead times,” says Mujico. “This shift reflects a strategic realisation that resilience requires proximity.”

About the Global Supply Chain Resilience Outlook

The research was conducted by Censuswide, among a sample of 515 CEOs from businesses generating over $500m in revenue across the UK, USA, Australia, Singapore and Germany. The data was collected between 21.04.2026 – 27.04.2026.

INDEPENDENT NEWS IS IMPORTANT.

Enjoy reading Eco Voice? Please help us by purchasing a GIFT Voucher or send one to a friend and encourage people to purchase trees or seeds via The Native Shop – www.nativeshop.com.au

Plants, seeds & more delivered to your door!