"struggling to meet demand"

 

"Sales at Honey-Can-Do International LLC are soaring, as homebound Americans snap up the Chicago-area company’s clothes racks, shelves and other housewares.

But the company’s contract manufacturers in China and Southeast Asia are so busy that they are struggling to meet demand, company founder and Chief Executive Steve Greenspon said.

Moreover, the scramble for goods produced overseas has created bottlenecks in shipping. Orders to Honey-Can-Do’s manufacturers in China that took 30 days a year and a half ago now take up to three months, while shipping costs are 50% higher, Mr. Greenspon said.

“Ships can sit offshore for weeks at a time in the U.S.,” waiting to dock at busy ports, Mr. Greenspon said. “There doesn’t seem to be any relief.”

Successful vaccination campaigns in the U.S., accumulated savings and pandemic-relief legislation are turbocharging consumer demand. That is straining the supply chains companies rely on to deliver everything from toys to cars.

....

But surveys of manufacturers indicate that lengthening delivery times—a sign that capacity is under strain—are now a near ubiquitous problem. Data firm IHS Markit reported that global delivery times were the second longest on record in February,

...

The cost of moving a 40-foot steel shipping container of toys from China to a West Coast port is now $4,500, up from $2,500 to $3,000 a year ago, Mr. Freman said. At that rate, the company’s transportation costs will increase by about $1.8 million a year, he said. Rising transportation costs have affected businesses everywhere."

Trechos retirados de "Factories Struggle To Meet Demand" no WSJ de ontem.