Acute congestion at America’s west coast ports is threatening supply chains across the world as operators struggle to cope with the weight of freight.
Disagreements over a new contract for dock workers and the inability of some ports to cope with ‘megaships’ carrying 14,000 containers or more have created a bottle-neck in US retail. Trade bodies are calling for White House intervention, but a ten-day lockout in 2002 cost the US economy almost a $1bn a day and took six months to recover from.
Times, 46
