Untitled - Ministerstwo Rozwoju Regionalnego

Chapter 20
DEVELOPEMNT OF INTERNATIONAL LOGISTICS
IN THE GLOBALISING 21st CENTURY ECONOMY
(El¿bieta Go³embska)
20.1. Introduction
International logistics nowadays is regarded as the epicentre of business transformation
in the rapidly globalising world economy 1 . This results from the fact
that the aim of logistics in the 21st century is the integration of supply sources,
production and turnover of goods between companies in all the continents, and
the minimization of costs of such operations, ahead of the processes of economic
globalisation. The rapid development of logistics is often generated by subsequent
waves of globalisation, which consequently has a significant impact on international
competitiveness of companies.
The aim of the present discussion is to identify major trends in the development
of international logistics in a wide context of the role and significance of
international business.
20.2. Major reasons for the development
of international logistics
The study to identify major reasons for the development of international logistics
should start with the definition of logistics itself. So, international logistics is
the management of the international supply chain, understood as the integra-
1 E. Go³embska, M. Szymczak, Logistyka miêdzynarodowa, Warsaw, PWE, 2004, p. 15.
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