Change drivers in high-tech supply chain

10/19/2012 4:11 PM EDT

The economy is still a drag on businesses today, but there seems to be hope for the future of high-tech exports from the United States, with growth pegged to rising demand from emerging markets.

In its annual survey focused specifically on exporting -- " Change in the (Supply) Chain" -- logistics company UPS, working with IDC Manufacturing Insights, found a "sizable increase" in optimism around the 2014 US export goal projected in the National Export Initiative. Of the 125 US-based high-tech executives polled, 85 percent believe the export goal is ultimately attainable, and 21 percent believe it is "very likely" to be achieved.

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The study also found that "among executives who expressed optimism in the long term growth of exports, nearly one in three attribute this to the steady increase in disposable income in emerging markets." More importantly, though, the survey respondents also picked key factors they believe will drive change in the high-tech supply chain over the next three to five years. These include costs, lead times, and responsiveness.

And, interestingly, 81 percent of them also anticipate that recent free trade agreements in Asia will increase their companies' imports and exports to and from the region. What's noteworthy, too, is an expected shift in the end-consumer market. According to UPS, while North America will remain the largest high-tech consumer market in the next three to five years, demand for high-tech products is expected to decrease by 7 percent in the region.