Europe’s logistics sector is no longer dealing with isolated crises but operating in what has become a permanent environment of disruption, according to Etienne Attard, CEO of Express Trailers.
In an interview with The Malta Business Weekly, Etienne Attard says the logistics industry has moved beyond reacting to occasional shocks and is now adapting to a fundamentally different global trading environment shaped by geopolitical instability, trade fragmentation, energy volatility, and supply chain insecurity.
“International logistics is no longer characterised by episodic disruption,” Attard explains. “What we are seeing today is a structural condition of uncertainty that is reshaping the entire sector.”
With more than seventy years of experience in transport and logistics, Express Trailers has witnessed multiple economic and geopolitical cycles. However, Attard argues that the current environment differs significantly from previous periods of volatility.
“In the past, crises were generally viewed as temporary events — whether it was the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, port congestion, or energy shocks. The assumption was always that markets would eventually stabilise. Today, there is growing recognition across the industry that instability itself has become the operating environment.”
According to Attard, the traditional logistics model built around efficiency optimisation and predictable globalisation is being replaced by one centred on resilience and adaptability.
“Global trade is more fragmented, more politicised, and less predictable than at any point in recent decades,” he says. “Supply chains are now being redesigned around the expectation of recurring disruption rather than stable international conditions.”
The impact is particularly visible in smaller and strategically located markets such as Malta, where maritime connectivity and international trade routes are critical to economic activity.
“For Malta’s logistics sector, trade wars, tariff volatility, and maritime insecurity can no longer be treated as temporary distortions,” Attard notes. “They are increasingly structural features that directly influence routing decisions, pricing, transit times, and customer behaviour.”
One of the most immediate challenges facing operators is growing operational complexity.
Attard identifies three major dynamics currently reshaping the sector.
“The first is persistent route volatility,” he explains. “Disruptions in maritime corridors such as the Red Sea have forced significant rerouting around Africa, increasing transit times and creating cascading effects throughout supply chains.”
A second challenge is regulatory fragmentation.
“As trade blocs become more rigid and tariff regimes shift more frequently, logistics companies are having to develop stronger capabilities in customs intelligence, compliance management, and regulatory coordination,” he says. “These are no longer administrative functions — they are now strategic operational requirements.”
At the same time, customer expectations are also evolving rapidly.
“Many businesses are moving away from purely cost-driven just-in-time supply chain models,” Attard says. “There is a growing emphasis on resilience, redundancy, regional diversification, and maintaining higher inventory buffers.”
This transformation, he argues, is also changing the role of logistics providers themselves.
“The sector is becoming less transactional and far more advisory in nature. Customers increasingly need partners who can help them interpret instability, manage scenarios, and maintain visibility across disrupted networks.”
For operators in Malta, this creates both pressure and opportunity.
“The pressure is clear — tighter margins, shorter planning cycles, and less predictable asset utilisation,” Attard says. “Traditional efficiency-led models are becoming increasingly insufficient.”
However, he believes companies that can offer agility, intelligence, and responsiveness will be best positioned to grow.
“As complexity increases, so does the value of orchestration,” he explains. “Logistics providers are evolving from transport operators into strategic intermediaries between global volatility and local execution.”
In this environment, Attard believes scale alone is no longer enough.
“The key differentiators today are adaptability, information, and responsiveness,” he says.
Looking ahead, Attard believes the industry must abandon the expectation that global logistics will eventually return to a stable equilibrium.
“The strategic question is no longer how to return to normal,” he concludes. “The real question is how to operate reliably in a world where normal no longer exists.”
