Anyone looking for the Playstation 5 from Sony or the latest Xbox from Microsoft these days will have to be prepared for disappointment. "Currently not available", "unfortunately no delivery possible", say the relevant providers. Certain toy models and bicycles, even wood cuttings, are hard to come by in hardware stores. In the auto industry, the production lines keep coming to a standstill due to the lack of chips. Although Corona has been around for two years and the shipwreck in the Suez Canal has long been a thing of the past: The international supply chains are still far from functioning normally again.

According to a survey published on Wednesday by the Munich Ifo Institute, 81.6 percent of German retailers complained in December that not all goods ordered could be delivered.

In November it was 77.8 percent.

Suppliers of electronic household appliances and entertainment electronics as well as hardware stores are particularly affected.

When will I finally get better?

The wholesale and foreign trade association BGA gives little hope.

"At the moment we are still assuming that the supply chain situation will calm down by mid-2022," says BGA President Dirk Jandura.

Provided that ports are not closed again on a large scale or that employees in logistics are not absent due to corona.

China is slowing down world trade

“China is the starting point for the delivery bottlenecks,” says Jacob Gunter, analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS). Because products from China are currently in great demand in Europe and America. People buy tablets, toys and furniture, also because they spend less money on travel and dining out. This is supported by the people's republic's export figures, which have grown strongly in recent months. However, China has to import more preliminary products in order to be able to expand production. The logistical and personnel capacities for this were insufficient at the front and rear, according to Gunter.

In addition, no other country has taken such restrictive measures to protect itself from the virus.

For example, ship crews in China have to be quarantined for seven weeks after a change, so they keep falling out.

Corona is not the only problem in world trade.

There are also storms as a result of climate change.

The most important Malaysian port, Port Klang, the twelfth largest container port in the world, just had to close due to heavy rainstorms.

The increasing typhoons force captains to change course.

In Japan, the fast food chain McDonald's sells only small portions of French fries until the end of the year due to a lack of supplies.

Reason: The import of potatoes was delayed due to flooding in the port of Vancouver in Canada.

Networked global economy without a buffer

Hardly anyone can escape the problem: 80 percent of world trade with a volume of around 20 trillion dollars is based on transnational supply chains. Much is produced "just in time", bearings have been abolished in many places for cost reasons. If it gets stuck at any point in the supply chain, the entire system will shake. An Apple iPhone alone needs parts from 43 countries before its owner can switch it on.

In a survey by the Oxford Economics institute, 80 percent of the international company bosses questioned answered that "the worst interruption in the supply chain is still to come". Almost one in three does not expect an improvement in logistics before the third quarter of 2022. This does not bode well for consumers in the western part of the world, who are already inflation-ridden. Because imports are becoming significantly more expensive due to the omnipresent scarcity.

“The contract prices for the container deliveries for the next year will be negotiated these days,” reports Martin Bäcker, head of the price team at the plastics information industry service.

His conclusion: “The shipowners get what they can.

The 40-foot container between Asia and Northern Europe will now cost 7,000 to 8,500 dollars, double the previous year's price. “In 2019, the price was around 1,800 dollars.

The spot prices for direct booking of a container are even higher.

According to the industry service, this currently costs up to $ 17,000.

In 2019 you could get a container for $ 2500 at short notice.