The slump raises questions about the future of inflation, the bargaining position of workers, and a shift in the country’s economic geography
Save time by listening to our audio articles as you multitaskIn recent days your columnist took a similar boat trip. Rather than the pre-Christmas bustle, he witnessed another eerie paralysis. Except this time the cause was not surfeit but deficit. Only four container ships were docked at the Port of Los Angeles. Last year there would have been more than three times as many. There was hardly a longshoreman in sight, or crewmen on the ships.
It was also a visualisation of the economic risks when things go awry. Supply-chain congestion was a cause of surging inflation in the pandemic, alongside loose monetary policy, fiscal stimulus and, this year, the war in Ukraine. Yet the bottlenecks ended abruptly. Ships waiting to enter both ports fell from 109 in January to 20 in June and negligible numbers in the past few weeks.
This relaxation of supply-chain pressure may help explain why goods-price inflation is easing. However, goods account for only a third of consumer spending; services account for two-thirds. Moreover, as Mr Clark points out, a shortage of personnel, such as dockers, truckers and warehouse workers, means the cost of labour in the supply chain remains high. “Labour costs inside thehaven’t budged,” he says. “Most of the job reductions are white-collar, not front-line workers.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
China clamps down on deepfakes with new regulationsScrew sports, Katie would rather watch Intel, AMD and Nvidia go at it. Having been obsessed with computers and graphics for three long decades, she took Game Art and Design up to Masters level at uni, and has been demystifying tech and science—rather sarcastically—for two years since. She can be found admiring AI advancements, scrambling for scintillating Raspberry Pi projects, preaching cybersecurity awareness, sighing over semiconductors, and gawping at the latest GPU upgrades. She's been heading the PCG Steam Deck content hike, while waiting patiently for her chance to upload her consciousness into the cloud.
Read more »
Couple face Christmas with ‘no home and no hope’ after sewage flooded their flat'Rather than getting to watch our family and friends unwrap their presents on Christmas Day, we got to watch them bob up and down in sewage water.'
Read more »
Business sec hopeful dispute will be resolved as rail workers stage second day of industrial actionRail workers began the second half of their latest two-day strike today, as the Business Secretary says he is 'hopeful' the row will be resolved 'sooner rather than later'.
Read more »
Ceramides found to be key in aging muscle healthDuring aging, mice, like humans, become inactive and lose muscle mass and strength. A team of scientists led by Johan Auwerx at EPFL have now discovered that when mice age, their muscles become packed with ceramides. Ceramides, known for their use in skin care products, are sphingolipids, a class of fat molecules that are not used to produce energy but rather perform different tasks in the cell.
Read more »