2021's Shortages Was Not Just COVID-19
You may be tempted to think that the shortages experienced in 2021 were due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Wendover Productions is here to explain that that is simply not the case. Sure, the pandemic exacerbated the situation but it did not cause it.
So what caused it? A fundamental structural vulnerability in the way today's supply chains work. So, how did it work?
As the 2020 U.S. Christmas season was approaching, people were spending much of their hard-earned money on delivery products. With the closing of all public services, it was the only thing they could do with their discretionary funds.
More goods were coming from Asia and 49.1% were getting into the U.S. through two ports: Los Angeles and Long Beach. This resulted in the ports simply not being able to keep up.
And that wasn't all, there was also a regional shortage of shipping containers which meant there was no way to deliver all of the products ordered. Add to that the fact that for every 100 containers that are imported in the U.S. only 40 are exported out and you can see why you have a problem.
All these factors and more explained in the video, resulted in shortages. So hey, don't blame it all on COVID-19!