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Biden Administration Gets Holiday Supply Chain Help From Walmart, FedEx, UPS

BY October 13, 2021

The US government is stepping up its efforts to relieve the supply chain nightmare that has led to shortages of some goods, higher prices for consumers and now threatens to slow the economic recovery.

Around the world, ports are congested as a result of the rapid rebound in demand for commodities and goods as much of the global economy has recovered from the pandemic. Shipping costs have soared, and companies wanting to move goods around are struggling because there just aren’t enough ships or containers available. All the while prices are going up for consumers.

President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that three of the largest U.S. goods carriers, Walmart, FedEx, and UPS, will up their efforts to address supply chain issues after retailers have already begun warning that some products may not make it to the shelves before the holidays. The President hosted executives from all three companies at the White House, as well as leaders of the Port of Los Angeles, the Port of Long Beach, California, and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union to discuss congestion at the ports and the extended hours. Other retailers, such as Target, Samsung, and Home Depot, will also assist with the backlog, which “paves the way for smaller retailers to also get the goods from a 24/7 model,” White House officials said.

The COVID19 pandemic has impacted the global supply chain, not just America’s. Logistical backups at shipping ports, mostly caused by worker shortages and COVID outbreaks, have doubled the time it takes for some products to make their way from Asia to the U.S. The delays have persisted for months, sending retailers scrambling to fix the bottlenecks and backups. One solution includes chartering their own private cargo vessels to get around the congestion before the holiday shopping season creates even more of a logjam.

 

CNN outlines the President’s plan here.

 



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