What's The Status Of Containers At, Near Or In The Ports.....

[global1]

Is our problem still backup at the ports?

Have the supply issues and shortages of product caught up?

Are ships still waiting to offshore to offload containers?

Are there enough truck drivers available to deliver product to warehouses and stores?

Do the corps see this as an opportunity to raise prices and blame it on shortages, supply issues, transport and delivery? Are they taking advantage of a false situation?

[bigendian]

1. A new tool from the Fed in NY.

https://www.newyorkfed.org/research/policy/gscpi#/interactive


Still historically high pressure on the global chain.

[moniss]

2. According to the publication

"Transport Topics" the situation has vastly improved regarding containers/backlog. Biden and company were part of the successful effort to get longer operational hours at the ports along with other improvements. The driver issue is up and down somewhat because of California now requiring a stricter interpretation of who is an independent contractor and who must be classified as an employee. Like many other industries the trucking industry has abused this designation for decades in order to shift costs/liabilities away from themselves while increasing their profits. This will be working its' way out over time. Supplies that I see at retail are much better but manufacturing is still having issues that are improving but will be affected by availability of labor for perhaps longer than those problems will be a major factor in the supply of retail goods for most consumers. That is not to say that certain items may not have quite the variety of normal times but we are still coming back from the most abnormal situation most can remember. The answer about corporations gouging is that some are and some aren't. If they try to tell you that it's because of dramatic increases in freight rates then you should be suspect. The firms that track pricing have been reporting major decreases in spot rates over the last several months compared to rates a year ago which had increased compared to the very beginning of the Covid pandemic. The general media is very poor at even knowing what questions to ask let alone who to ask or where to look for the information. As an example the core inflation rate increased 0.5%+ in June but the media is reporting this as a "surge". A half a point or so is hardly a surge. Energy prices have been falling week after week now but they don't breathlessly report that 24/7 like they do the increases. Just like the list of Biden accomplishments/actions in just his first year is a very extensive list but you only see endless reports about what didn't get passed or remains to be done. Your questions were well thought out and all very pertinent.