Your Questions Answered

Q: How will the global supply chain backlog impact your holiday shopping?

Massive supply chain disruptions are leaving shelves empty in stores across the country and raising prices for what’s in stock. 

A: It’s important to understand what is causing these supply chain issues.

Experts say in the midst of the global pandemic, the cost of shipping containers needed to move goods from Asia to the United States is soaring.

Plus, there is a shortage of workers, from factory employees to truck drivers.

It is a logistical headache that both small and big businesses warn will get worse during the busy holiday season.

Shopping experts say brands like Adidas, American Apparel, Gap and Nike have already been affected.

Popular toy companies like Little Tykes, Bratz and Fisher Price have also warned about potential toy shortages and raised prices.

The White House has launched a task force to address these issues, but experts say it will take several months before the supply chain can work its way through the backlog.

RELATED: Biden to launch task force on bottlenecks in supply chains

As for send out those gifts, the recommended final shipping days for the US Postal Service, FedEx and UPS are similar to the dates in 2019 and 2020.

For UPS 3-day Select Delivery and FedEx 3-day Freight arriving by December 24, you need to ship your items by December 21.

For Postal Service Retail Ground Delivery arriving before December 25, you should ship by December 15.

RELATED: UPS, FedEx, USPS release holiday shipping dates as retailers brace for more supply chain disruption 

But even if you meet the deadlines, you could see late packages because of these supply chain issues.

The Postal Service also made changes at the beginning of October that slow down service. On top of that, they tacked on a temporary holiday price increase as well.

What are you curious about? Submit your questions here. 

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Source: KXLY.com