Shadow inflation: Shipping costs are up way more than you think

This article gives lots of measures of factors contributing to supply chain cost. There are good graphs indicating the changes.

But these are contributing hidden costs to products, and those costs will be borne by consumers of the final products. That’s inflation.

It may be the first time that inflation is influenced by marine supply chain problems since the incessant wars on the seas in the 17th and 18th century. And in those days, frequent shooting wars guaranteed recessions; it was leisure goods like tea that had inflated prices. World Wars I and II also caused inflation, and shortages, but these were only partly caused by pillaging of marine traffic on the high seas. In most cases price controls were put into effect to resist inflation for ordinary people; and the extra goods were needed for the soldiers. We don’t have those now.

Somehow in the US and EU we need to find people to do the hard jobs in the supply chain to keep goods moving— warehouse jobs and driving jobs.

Greg Miller, Senior Editor Friday, October 22, 2021

Shadow inflation: Shipping costs are up way more than you think

3 responses to “Shadow inflation: Shipping costs are up way more than you think

  1. Pingback: Shadow inflation: Shipping costs are up way more than you think

  2. The spiraling prices are not limited to marine fares only. It is pandemic – man made crisis driven price rise, all over the world. For no reason, just to make up for the lost opportunities, increasing prices of every product is considered to be the only solution. Governments should view it seriously and take action in the interest of the people.

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