PwC, in collaboration with the World Economic Forum, has recently published a White Paper entitled "Trade Compliance for Leadership: Navigating a Shifting Global Landscape". Drawing on insights from global companies and PwC experts, the paper highlights the profound evolution of international trade requirements.
Today, trade regulations extend far beyond what is traded, critically examining how products are made. New obligations around sustainability and labour standards are now embedded in customs post-audit procedures. Over the past decade, businesses have faced a complex array of changes: geopolitical conflicts, new border procedures, the impact of COVID-19, expanded sanctions and intensified export control surge in digitalisation. These developments have dramatically increased the complexity of compliance, with governments demanding greater transparency and real-time reporting.
“Technology and compliance are pivotal in addressing foreign trade challenges, especially where systems are fragmented and disjoined. This highlights the urgent need for an integrated compliance approach, rather than reactive, siloed methods that can result in misdeclarations, missed savings, or regulatory breaches. Legacy systems, some created more than 10 years ago, may lack flexibility, and off-the-shelf tools can quickly become outdated when the new day brings new changes to the rules.”
The risks are substantial: with trade lanes representing $9.7 trillion in value, non-compliance could disrupt trade flows worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
“Boards and executive leadership must ensure trade management is well-resourced, coordinated across departments, and able to inform strategic decisions. In today’s environment, trade compliance is a strategic driver of resilience and competitiveness. Companies that invest in robust compliance functions will be better prepared for future challenges in supply chain.”
Trade Compliance for Leadership
Navigating a Shifting Global Landscape
To help organisations navigate this fast-moving landscape, the White Paper outlines four key practices for effective international trade management:
1. Assess Exposure
Evaluate vulnerability to geopolitical, regulatory, sustainability, and technological changes.
2. Improve Internal Collaboration
Integrate trade management across legal, government affairs, sustainability, procurement, and IT to identify and manage risks early.
3. Benchmark maturity
Assess your trade compliance maturity and prioritise investments in people, processes, and systems. Decide which tasks to manage internally and where external support is needed.
4. Explore Tooling & Technology
Use automation, centralised data, and AI tools to shift compliance from a reactive function to a proactive enabler of business continuity and strategic decision-making.
By adopting connected approach—where digital systems, data, and processes are seamlessly linked and integrated—companies can reduce manual workload and costs, enhance cross-functional collaboration, strengthen supply chain transparency, and respond swiftly to regulatory changes.
Trade compliance has evolved from a back-office necessity to a strategic enabler of business continuity, risk management, and competitive advantage. Companies must move beyond reactive compliance and invest in resilient, forward-looking trade functions, ensuring they are equipped not only with legal expertise but also with the ability to interpret geopolitical developments and collaborate effectively across the organisation. While the challenges are significant, so too are the opportunities for those who adapt strategically.
