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Port delays a 'global challenge' according to G7 Finance Ministers
Andrew Wilson
Europe;
05:16

Container jams are not only affecting Felixstowe port in the UK, they are being seen around the world.

In the UK, there are added domestic complications with the shortage of truck drivers but it's clear that the world is wrestling with a global supply chain crisis.

In Washington DC in the U.S. the G7 finance ministers agreed to tackle the global supply chain challenge together.

"You should be reassured that we're doing absolutely everything we can to mitigate some of these challenges. They are global in nature, so we can't fix every single problem.

"But I feel confident that there will be good provision of goods for everybody, and we are working our way to remove blockages where we can," UK minister Rishi Sunak said. 

 

Container ports are backlogged around the globe. /Port of Felixstowe

Container ports are backlogged around the globe. /Port of Felixstowe

The headline crisis is the congestion off the California coast, where many container ships are waiting weeks to offload in Los Angeles and Long Beach.

The White House has now announced a new 24/7 shift pattern to tackle the delays, with a presidential call to national transportation networks to step up as well.

"The rest of the world is closing in. And we risk losing our edge if we don't step up in order to be globally competitive. We need to improve our capacity to make things here in America, while also moving finished products across the country and around the world. We need to think big and bold," President Biden said.

Shipping costs are five times what they were last year. In the UK the lack of truck drivers is biting hard, and analysts are predicting a difficult winter.

Whether the problem is global or local, the London government is choosing to remain buoyant in public.

"I'm confident that people will be able to get their their toys for Christmas, as I say I quite understand why people are concerned by these headlines but we are working through these challenges as we have worked through other challenges.

"But there's no doubt that the pandemic has unearthed some extraordinary weaknesses in how the world does business and collateral damage in some sectors will be unavoidable," UK minister Oliver Dowden said. 

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