Western European supply chain management software market grew 6.5% in 2004

In 2004, the supply chain management (SCM) applications market in Western Europe increased by 6.5%, according to IDC. With the exchange rate impact of 2004, the growth suddenly corresponds to a still negative market development of -1.3%. For the forecast period through 2009, IDC expects the Western European SCM applications market to grow by 3.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). Major market drivers will be the need to keep up with the evolving concepts around composite applications, the proliferation of RFID deployments, data synchronization projects as a prerequisite for collaborative supply chains, increasing demand for supply chain analytics, and compliance with new EU directives.