Spices, wool, toys, smartphones ... the shortages are gone to last
Several grains of sand have gripped a hitherto well-oiled global supply chain, energized by a strong upturn in demand. Until it derailed. The world economy has turned into the unpredictable. In Europe and the United States, consumption, helped by support plans, resumes over the course of vaccination campaigns, while in Asia factories and ports are closed to curb the circulation of Covid-19. Caught between the two, shipping companies must transport rapidly increasing volumes of goods (+ 10.8% in 2021, according to the latest forecasts from the World Trade Organization). The congestion of container ships is growing at the entrance to ports, lengthening transport times and fueling soaring freight prices, which have increased tenfold in eighteen months. Result: shortages multiply, from spices to wool, from toys to iPhones. Some lead to others: the lack of semiconductors has, for example, forced car manufacturers to shut down the activity of some of their factories. “In the United States an...