Nearshoring is really happening, according to John Manners-Bell, Chief Executive of Ti Insight and business professor at the London Metropolitan University. Deglobalisation is being driven by a whole host of factors, which is leading to the creation of new supply chain networks in Europe.
Speaking at Intermodal Europe 2025, Manners-Bell highlights Morocco as a country playing a central role in the process of nearshoring. The data is quite clear: the automotive industry now accounts for 25% of Moroccan GDP and employs 250,000 people. China’s CITIC Dicastal built a 400 million dollar factory for aluminium cast parts, and the country is now the world’s fourth largest exporter of tomatoes.
For European companies, Morocco and other North African countries provide opportunities to reduce costs by moving production out of the EU. An added bonus is that it helps mitigate risks associated with China – Europe supply chains. Chinese companies have also caught on and do not want to miss out on the new trend, according to Manners-Bell. They too invest in North Africa so as not to lose out.
With business operations moving into North Africa, Manners-Bell sees “a sort of pan-Mediterranean network” coming into being. Ro-Ro traffic between Morocco and Spain is up from around 8,000 tonnes in 2018 to some 12,500 tonnes in 2024. It peaked in 2022, with approximately 14,700 tonnes of freight exchanged via Ro-Ro connections. These connections are not just limited to Iberia, but also extend to France and Italy, making for the pan-Mediterranean network.
All in all, some 17% of companies say that they are nearshoring in the post-covid or post-China era. “That may not seem like a lot”, says Manners-Bell, “but just think about how huge China’s market is. Then compare that to Morocco, and it becomes clear that it will have a huge impact in North Africa, for example.” Other companies are also re-shoring (moving operations back to their home countries, some 20% of companies surveyed by Ti Insight).
Whereas in the past, businesses were eager to move operations to China to suppress costs and maximise profit, other factors have now shifted the balance towards nearshoring and regionalisation. The list of factors is long: economic risk, natural disasters, geopolitics, corruption, freight theft, cyber crime and more. By contrast, lower lead times, improved oversight and resilience are among the reasons pulling business closer to home.
However, Manners-Bell also says that nearshoring is not a quick or easy process. There are high initial investment costs that will delay the process, and the workforce in new countries may lack proper training and the required skills. It will take time to grow production capacity.
