Empty supermarket shelves, manufacturers without raw materials, and the price of everything, because of its scarcity will 'rocket' !!! Port chaos leaves almost half UK factories waiting longer for goods Tom Belger 16 December 2020, 11:16 am Containers are seen aboard the the CSCL Mercury at the Port of Felixstowe. Photo: Peter Cziborra/Reuters UK factories are “paying the price” for port chaos, with almost half of manufacturing firms reporting longer wait times for supplies. In a leading business survey, 45% of manufacturers this month said stocks were taking longer to arrive than last month, with some forced to lower production. The poll shows “severe pressure” on supply chains “overwhelmingly linked to freight delays following congestion at UK ports,” according to an industry report on Wednesday. IHS Markit and the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS), which compile the survey, said shortages of critical stocks were hitting production volumes at some firms. Backlogs of work at factories have risen at their fastest pace in a decade in December. WATCH: There is a path to a Brexit deal, says EU READ MORE: Firms sound ports alarm as Brexit checks threaten meat and salad supplies A string of firms from toy retailers to carmakers have sounded the alarm over issues at UK ports in recent weeks. Rising container volumes linked to the pandemic and the run-up to Christmas have increased the strain on ports and shipping firms worldwide, with Felixstowe facing among the most severe disruption. Issues in the UK have been exacerbated by uncollected PPE shipments and Brexit stockpiling, with more disruption expected as new Brexit trade rules come into force on 31 December. Tesco is among the firms reported to have stockpiled goods. The latest purchasing managers’ index (PMI) survey, showed lead times lengthening at the third steepest rate since the poll began in 1992 — with only the virus and lockdown upheaval seen this April and May worse. Levels of uncompleted work have risen for only the second time in three years of monthly surveys. Factories have had to source supplies elsewhere and pay more for goods and shipping to plug gaps and meet demand. “Many essential materials were not getting through. Manufacturing companies were also paying the price of goods shortages with the highest rise in cost inflation since June 2018 as shipping and commodity prices soared. The end of the Brexit transition period will mean some disruption regardless of whether a trade deal is struck as the UK government has decided to leave the single market and customs union. “Of course, the concern will be that these problems will become magnified next month when the UK and EU move to new trade terms,” wrote ING analysts in a note. “Even under a free trade agreement, which we still think is the mostly likely scenario, there will be major changes for businesses. “As things stand, full customs processes will kick in at European ports in January, while the UK is offering a reprieve for businesses on some elements, including customs declarations.”
Wow I've been to a few non EU Countries and I have never seen the issues you bring up there so why is your problem with places outside the EU,
I have no issue with European countries outside the EU, but the scunbag 'little englanders' here in the uk, have managed to bugger up the previous trade deal we had with the rest of Europe and replaced it with an even worse one !!! - how's that for intelligence ???
That depends on what they are, where they come from, and what tariffs willl be imposed if they come from abroad.
So, we are to pay for the scumbag 'nasty party's' incompetence !!! Consumers warned they will bear the cost of Brexit border delays PA Jan 9th 2021 5:30AM Consumers will bear the cost of the trouble facing traders following the imposition of Brexit red tape, a senior retail chief has warned. Lord Rose, chairman of supermarket delivery company Ocado, said the delays and difficulties in international shipping caused by added paperwork meant the “cost will be passed on to the consumer”. A haulage firm boss, meanwhile, predicted the customs changes would lead to a “bloodbath” for the sector with delivery delays eating into already tight profit margins. It comes after Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove warned businesses and hauliers on Friday that there is likely to be “significant additional disruption” at the UK border as a result of increasing trade traffic, particularly at Dover. The trouble already experienced following the end of the transition period with the European Union on December 31 has led to major parcel courier DPD pausing some delivery services into Europe, including Ireland. Supermarket giant Marks & Spencer said the new regulations are set to “significantly impact” its overseas ventures in Ireland, the Czech Republic and France. Lord Rose, the ex-Remain campaign chief and former M&S chairman, told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “You can’t interfere with a finely honed, 50-year legacy supply chain and expect it to all run smoothly on day one. “The issue of transport and hauliers not wanting to send their lorries here is because they are worried about their lorries being stuck and worried about lost profit, which means therefore the cost will be passed on to the consumer. “You will see some short-term shortages but let’s be clear, there is not going to be a famine. “Food will continue to come in, although at this time of the year 50-80%-plus of our fruit and veg comes in from Europe and beyond and a lot of that comes in through Dover on trucks. “We’re talking about fresh product which is perishable. If it doesn’t get out within 24 hours, it goes off, it rots, it gets thrown away – that’s lost profit, that’s a real problem for businesses both ways.” Lorenzo Zaccheo, managing director of Kent-based haulage firm Alcaline UK, said he was expecting deliveries to take two-and-a-half days longer than last year when the country was still following EU rules. He said vehicles were currently getting stuck at ports for seven hours and that European hauliers were turning down work in the UK, even when offered twice the usual rate. Mr Zaccheo told Today he thought the problems would go on for “months” longer, adding: “First of all there are not enough clearing agents out there – then you’ve got Covid, with some of them self-isolating and everything else. “It is just a complete mess. This is going to be a bloodbath. Cost wise – as we’ve seen this week – the cost of transport will treble into the United Kingdom because everybody is refusing to come. “We offered twice as much and they still don’t want to come.” Rachel Reeves, Labour’s shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said transport companies had been “left wrangling with completely overwhelmed systems without any help”. The Government has promised to “redouble” efforts to inform traders of the paperwork required now that the UK is outside of EU rules. European hauliers are avoiding Britain for fear of being stuck in delays, according to a transport boss (Gareth Fuller/PA) Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal ensured free trade on goods could continue but being outside the single market and customs union has still meant added checks on cargo entering Europe. As well as requiring the correct paperwork, including export declarations and the extra certificates needed for products such as plant and animal products, hauliers must also secure a negative Covid-19 test and a Kent Access Permit before embarking on their travels onwards to Europe. The latest Government figures show that around 700 lorries have been turned away from the border since new rules came into force and about 150 fines have been handed out for non-compliance with new rules designed to reduce truck queues in Kent. But officials have warned that those numbers could increase as the flow of lorries heading through Kent increases, with traffic drastically reduced at present. Over the past week, there has been an average of 1,584 lorries per day attempting border crossings, which is only around 40% of historical norms, according to the Cabinet Office.
