Numerous products will be affected by the port strike, as thousands of dockworkers along the East and Gulf coast walked off the job on Tuesday, October 1. Over 36 ports have shut down as negotiations between the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) and International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) have broken down. As a result, many items will likely increase in price over the coming months, especially if the dock strike remains unresolved. Here’s a list of what products consumers should consider stocking up on now as the holiday season draws closer.
What items will be affected by a sustained dock strike?
A wide range of items will be affected by the port strike, including food, alcohol, clothing, pharmaceuticals, cars, and more. Here’s a breakdown of which products will be impacted the most, according to various economic experts speaking with USA TODAY, Business Insider, and Axios.
- Perishable foods – Produce will be greatly affected by the port strike, especially soybeans, eggs, poultry as exports and bananas, mangoes, avocados, coffee, cocoa, salt, sugar, and seafood as an imports. Even if sellers are able to move these products by plane, the increased shipping rates will raise their price. Importer Peter Kopke of Kopke Fruit said to The Orange County Register that “any fruit that arrives after October 1 will be condemned to the trash can” as long as the port strike is in place.
- Auto parts – Over 55% of auto parts enter the U.S. from Asia through the ports that are shut down due to the strike, as noted by supply chain professor Jason Miller on LinkedIn. This will cause “widespread disruption” to the auto-manufacturing sectors across the country. Tires imported by Michelin, Goodyear, and more will also be stuck at the ports.
- Electronics – Machinery parts, cell phones, and computers come from Asian nations through to these ports as well.
- Wine & Spirits – Any imported wine, beer, and spirits from South America, Europe, and the Caribbean will be unavailable, though America has a lot of options for alternatives. The American Farm Bureau says that 80% of imported beer, wine, whiskey, and scotch come through the affected ports.
- Pharmaceuticals – Drug shortages could mount if the dock strike doesn’t end within a month. That said, pharmaceutical products can be shipped by air more easily than other items.
- Wood products – Furniture and any products made from plywood arriving from Asia and South America will likely be delayed.
Many retailers and manufacturers, including Ikea, Costco, Samsung, Walmart, have already expedited holiday goods orders and stockpiled products in anticipation of the dock strike. However, Jonathan Gold from the National Retail Federation says that retailers will still have issues replenishing stock and will incur extra warehouse costs for longer storage, per the AP.
Other factors are also impacting supply chains include the widespread damage and flooding from Hurricane Helene and the Houthi attacks on international commercial shipping that have shut down the Red Sea and Suez Canal.
President Biden stated on Monday that he would not intervene in the dockworkers strike because “there’s collective bargaining.” The Teamsters union have neither endorsed Kamala Harris nor Donald Trump for president before the 2024 election in November.
