Empty Shelves

Global "just in time" supply chains don't have a lot of wiggle room. Things could get very interesting in ways no one can really predict.

“We’ve halted all shipping plans from the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia,” the employee said. “Every factory order is halted. Anything that hasn’t been loaded will be scrapped, and the cargo already at sea is being re-costed.”

One client had told the company it was abandoning goods already on the water and giving them to the shipping company, as “no one will buy them after the tariffs are imposed”.

The company’s leadership had returned to China to manage a flood of order cancellations and had instructed its staff to suspend all container business until tariffs stabilise or alternative markets are secured.