hey bruce---we haven't "talked" since your return and i am having trouble understanding you with the accent you acquired. i guess we survived another day and it was nice seeing all that black ink today. i had stopped using catsup on my french fries because it reminded me of my portfolio.
as if we didn't have enough to worry about, i had some interesting "trade" conversations today. i deal with all the major retail chains in the country. from wal-mart to home depot. from sears to k-mart and all the major regional chains as well. just about anyone that sells products for the home.
i was talking to people from the pacific northwest's largest retailer about a problem we're having getting some of our imported goods. we import about 15% of our product line, most of that from the orient. well, here is where the old trade imbalance is playing a roll mr. and mrs. j.q. public doesn't even think about.
all those containers of products leaving japan, china and hong kong got to our shores earlier this year. and guess what? there wasn't enough goods going back to fill up all the empty containers. so, there is now a container shortage in the orient. illegally, the prices of containers has become a black market over there.
now, if you're fortunate or connected enough to get a container, the next problem is since there were not as many containers going back to the orient, there were less ships taking them. yup! now, there is a shortage of shipping space on an ever decreasing number of ships available to ship form the orient. the account i spoke to in portland was sending their import manager over to hong kong to try and figure out how to get 160 containers of trim-a-tree product on ships to get it to portland in time for the xmas selling season.
one other tickle down effect is that when ships arrived in the u.s and unloaded their cargo and their was no cargo to haul back they stayed in port which is tying up dock space for those ships that are coming form the orient. what a wonderful world.
maybe if little billy c. had been paying closer attention instead of getting involved in intern training we wouldn't be in quite this mess. i think i read after he gets back from his vodkafest there is a japaneese/us conference slated in your neck of the woods that will hopfully yield some solutions to this and other problems that are getting in our way of making money and enjoying life.
oh well, the beatles said it best. "oobla dee, oobla daa. life goes on. yeah, life goes on."
take care.
s.k. |
