Analyzing the Dependency Between National Logistics Performance and Competitiveness: Which Logistics Competence is Core for National Strategy?

With the advancements in the strategic management field, logistics management has changed considerably and logistics competency has emerged as a new and important area of research. In this regard, the purpose of this study is to find the core logistics abilities, which enable nations to achieve a competitive advantage in the logistics market. Two different data sets, one from World Economic Forum and the other from the World Bank were used. Cluster and discriminant analysis were used to answer the research questions. The results indicated that while the logistics infrastructure and the customs were absolute in determining a high-competitive country, the logistics competence and the tracking & tracing were the core logistics abilities needed to sustain the competitive advantage in long term. The implications of these results are also discussed.