Maritime News | Supply Chain
It’s said that the best supply chain is the one you never talk about. If that’s true, we’re now living through the worst supply chain, because executives can’t stop talking about it.
Companies have mentioned the term “supply chain” a record 3,000 times during investor presentations as of Tuesday, and with the third-quarter earnings season just kicking off and no end in sight to global logistical logjams, we could easily double that tally by year end.
“Every company call I listen to mentions supply chain issues,” said Brian Yarbrough, an analyst at Edward Jones who covers Walmart and other U.S. retailers. “Unfortunately, it is all across the spectrum.”
That spectrum includes factories in Vietnam, ports in China and California and rail and trucking lanes across the U.S. It now takes roughly 73 days for ocean freight to make the China-to-U.S. trip. As many kids could tell you, there are now 72 days until Christmas. Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, but his sleigh might be a bit light this year.
The prospect of holiday shoppers being greeted with empty shelves has spooked the Biden administration, which pushed the Port of Los Angeles to begin 24/7 operations and Wednesday cajoled major retailers to “step up” to deal with the problem.
Walmart, Home Depot and others have already taken drastic steps, including chartering their own cargo vessels, but Yarbrough and other analysts say things could get worse before they get better.
Over time, spending on travel and entertainment should pick up as the pandemic wanes, slowing demand for goods and allowing ships, trucks and trains to catch up. For now, though, expect the supply-chain chatter to continue unabated.
Matthew Boyle in New York
Piling Up
Key container ports are seeing increased congestion in Asia
A tropical storm that’s lashing southern China mixed with Covid-related supply chain snarls is causing a ship backlog from Shenzhen to Singapore, intensifying fears retail shelves may look rather empty come Christmas. Shipping data compiled by Bloomberg show there are currently 67 container ships anchored off Hong Kong and Shenzhen, around 22% more congested than median daily counts from April through Oct. 14. Typhoon Kompasu caused schools to close in Hong Kong and canceled stock market trading in the financial hub on Wednesday.
Source : Bloomberg
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