There were a lot of posts PB about the Evergreen container ships. One thing I haven't seen discussed is the fires at the semi conductor plants. There was a huge one last Fall at AKM in Japan. Devastating for the industry I'm in and there has been zero discussion about it in the news. Burned for 3 fucking days. Still no report on what caused it.
https://www.akm.com/jp/en/about-us/news/information/20210122-information/
They make chips for all sorts of consumer electronics, appliances, it effects various industries including automotive manufacturing, cell phones, home audio and video, automotive electronics, medical devices, anything with an oscillator.
On top of that there has been increased demand for consumer products which get shipped overseas using these container ships. They are loading them heavier and heavier and there have been a few instances of containers getting lost at sea which is even more devastating to manufacturers desperately awaiting goods to sell. Because everyone is stuck home and can't go out they're buying shit online to stay entertained at home. The ports are backlogged worse than I've ever seen it before. Everything comes in via California and they are still effectively locked down so still operating with staff restrictions. It's a cluster. I talked to a manufacturer yesterday who still waiting for a container that was supposed to arrive in January.
And then earlier this week there was another fire at a different semiconductor plant.
https://www.marketwatch.com/press-release/fire-at-renesas-semiconductor-plant-aggravates-already-stressed-auto-chip-supply-chain-2021-03-23
I have been in consumer electronics business for 21 years and this is the 1st time I ever heard of a chip plant fire effecting production and supply this severely. And now 2 fires at 2 different plants? This is China fucking us over. They are just putting the squeeze on America to get Biden to soften up and ease restrictions, rollback what Trump did so China can come to the rescue with semiconductors. Previous admin blacklisted China’s semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. That shit should be made here anyways. Now with this shortage, car manufacturers are rolling back production because they can't finish cars without these components. That means layoffs for autoworkers and dealerships who won't have inventory to sell.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-honda-output-idUSKBN29D1NF
This is a big deal. It's only going to get worse and can cripple our economy even further if those who are employed and have disposable income can't buy the shit they want to. Just my 2 cents, carryon.