logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2022
37m 37s

Money Talks: Supply chain reactions

The Economist
About this episode

More than two years after the pandemic, supply chains are still snarled. Shipping times remain at record highs. Baby food, tampons, and semiconductors are all scarce. Companies are still struggling to answer a basic question: just when will all of this end? But one thing seems clear: after years of anxious speculation, the structure of the world’s supply chains have fundamentally changed.

On this week’s Money Talks, hosts Soumaya Keynes, Mike Bird and Alice Fulwood go on a journey to find out what’s still leading to delays and investigate the big shifts that will continue long after shelves are finally full. They’re joined by Audrey Ross, import and export compliance manager at Orchard Custom Beauty and Chris Rogers, principal supply chain economist at Flexport, who talk about the factors that are still gumming up delivery of goods. Then, Michael Wax, co-founder of Forto, explains why digitising the industry could help speed up shipping times. Finally, our US business editor Charlotte Howard unpacks what all of this will mean for supply chains in the future and why the old system might be finished.

Sign up for our new weekly newsletter dissecting the big themes in markets, business and the economy at www.economist.com/moneytalks 

For full access to print, digital and audio editions, subscribe to The Economist at www.economist.com/podcastoffer



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Dec 2021
Money Talks: 2021 unwrapped
From Ever Given to Evergrande, via empty crisp packets and the metaverse, host Henry Tricks leads a brave band of The Economist’s finest through the tribulations and triumphs of the past year in business, finance and economics. The team unpack the data that made their jaws drop, ... Show More
32m 57s
Dec 2021
Money Talks: Meet the cryptokings
Four men hold the keys to a $2trn market. Our finance correspondent Matthieu Favas speaks to some of the most powerful people in the world of cryptocurrencies—the founders of the most important crypto exchanges—to find out what it takes to stay on top in the most volatile market ... Show More
35m 36s
Dec 2021
Money Talks: The not-so-great resignation
The idea that the pandemic has prompted people to quit their jobs en masse fills corporate earnings calls, headlines and social media. But do the data hold up? Host Patrick Lane investigates what is really going on in the labour market. Will the Biden administration usher in a ne ... Show More
28m 37s
Recommended Episodes
Jun 2022
Money Talks: Supply chain reactions
More than two years after the pandemic, supply chains are still snarled. Shipping times remain at record highs. Baby food, tampons, and semiconductors are all scarce. Companies are still struggling to answer a basic question: just when will all of this end? But one thing seems cl ... Show More
37m 37s
Oct 2021
The Great Supply Chain Disruption
Throughout the pandemic, businesses of all sizes have faced delays, product shortages and rising costs linked to disruptions in the global supply chain. Consumers have been confronted with an experience rare in modern times: no stock available, and no idea when it will come in.Ou ... Show More
33m 3s
Oct 2021
America’s broken supply chain
The commercial pipeline is clogged. Every year, this supply chain brings $1 trillion worth of toys, clothing, electronics and furniture from Asia to the United States. And right now, no one knows how to unclog it.  Read more: For months, consumers have confronted shortages of goo ... Show More
22m 4s
Apr 2021
Checks and Balance: Chain reaction
A container ship stuck in the Suez canal, tensions with China, and the vaccine race have combined to make America’s supply chains look vulnerable. President Biden has ordered a security review and his infrastructure plan includes measures to protect them. What are the politics of ... Show More
31m 39s
Feb 2023
Retailers are stocking more stuff, a good sign for the economy
The most recent issue of the Logistics Managers Index, an industry gauge of retail inventories, showed that sellers expanded their stocks in January. That suggests that consumer demand is remaining strong and that supply chains are sorting themselves out, all good signs for the e ... Show More
7m 56s
Nov 2022
Money Talks: The tech reckoning
Most of America’s biggest technology firms are having a bad time - and not just the ones who have been recently acquired by a mercurial billionaire. More than $1tn has been wiped from their market value in recent weeks. Is the sell-off just investor jitters? Or is it a symptom of ... Show More
35m 28s
Dec 2023
The Supply Chain Buzz: Blockchain, Cloud, and Metrics in Supply Chain Evolution
The Supply Chain Buzz is Supply Chain Now’s regular Monday livestream, held at 12 noon ET each week. This show focuses on some of the leading stories from global supply chain and global business, always with special guests – the most important of which is the live audience!In thi ... Show More
36m 14s
Oct 2022
Money Talks: Wall Street's top cop
Gary Gensler has spent just a little over a year and a half as the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), America’s top markets regulator. In that time, he’s proposed 40 separate filings for rules, given 60 speeches, and intervened, in sometimes controversial ways, ... Show More
37 m
Nov 2023
Rhythms of the Supply Chain: Unpacking Amazon, Tyson Foods, and Manufacturing Trends with Brian Greene
The Supply Chain Buzz is Supply Chain Now’s regular Monday livestream, held at 12 noon ET each week. This show focuses on some of the leading stories from global supply chain and global business, always with special guests – the most important of which is the live audience!In thi ... Show More
45m 41s
Nov 2023
The Supply Chain Buzz featuring Vin Vashishta
The Supply Chain Buzz is Supply Chain Now’s regular Monday livestream, held at 12 noon ET each week. This show focuses on some of the leading stories from global supply chain and global business, always with special guests – the most important of which is the live audience!In thi ... Show More
43m 21s