In recent times it has been reported that the United States is facing a crisis in nearly a number of things. However, the entire blame has been put on the supply chains but the actual fact differs. Jack Kleinhenz, the chief economist at NRF’s has said that the spending could have become higher if there was no shortage of the items that the consumers are eager to buy.
The shortages have become even more relevant as the term ‘everything shortage’ is being used by a number of people and describes the frustration of the consumers as they are trying to get their hands on all kinds of items including, toys, paper towels, milk and more. However, one cannot ignore the fact that the country is facing a shortage of everything. Reports say that the United States has imported plenty of stuff since the past eight months. This could be a reason that the country is facing a supply-chain congestion.
Tao make things more clear, the inventory sales ratio of the country can be observed. The US Census Bureau has tracked as to how much stuff the sellers have and how much stuff the consumers are actually buying. It is noticed that the ratio is on a ten year low which has indicated that the country is facing a shortage. On the other hand the Port of Los Angeles has informed about a 30 percent increase in the incoming cargo during the first nine months of the year.
The above information has indicated that the inventory to sales ratio is not low for the reason that the US is facing a shortage of stuff. It is happening for the reason that the sales have gone down. During the first nine months, in 2021 the retail sales was up by 14.5 percent over the same period in 2020, which was a year when the retail sales was 8 percent more than what it was in 2019.
Photo Credits: Business Insider
