Biden Discusses Supply Chain Bottleneck Solutions with US Logistics Industry CEOs

Meeting with Walmart and FedEx CEOs... Discussing Solutions to Bottleneck Issues
Announcement of Port Facility Improvement Plan... "Mobilizing Gongbyeongdae to Expand Port Facilities"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] U.S. President Joe Biden reportedly met with CEOs of major U.S. logistics companies such as FedEx and Walmart to discuss solutions to the deepening supply chain bottlenecks at U.S. port facilities. The Biden administration also announced plans to allocate part of the budget from the recently passed infrastructure investment bill to expand port facilities. This move is interpreted as an effort to recover from the sharply declined approval ratings during the bill's passage and to directly address various political controversies.

According to Bloomberg on the 9th (local time), President Biden met with CEOs of major U.S. logistics companies including Walmart, United Parcel Service, FedEx, and Target to discuss solutions to the supply chain bottlenecks, which are known to be the main cause of the recent logistics crisis in the U.S. President Biden reportedly urged the logistics company CEOs to ensure there are no disruptions in delivery issues ahead of the large-scale shopping season at the end of the year.

Earlier, the Biden administration announced that it would invest part of the budget from the recently passed infrastructure investment bill in projects to supplement and modernize U.S. port facilities to alleviate bottlenecks within ports. CNBC, citing a Biden administration official, reported, "Within the next 60 days, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will be mobilized to carry out approximately $4 billion (about 4.7 trillion KRW) worth of port construction work," adding, "34 billion dollars will also be invested in port modernization projects."

President Biden is also scheduled to visit the Port of Baltimore in Maryland on the 10th to reiterate the necessity of the infrastructure investment bill and announce measures to supplement port facilities and alleviate port bottlenecks. This move is analyzed as a direct response to political controversies surrounding the infrastructure investment bill amid a series of setbacks including the recent logistics crisis, rapid inflation, and the Democratic stronghold Virginia gubernatorial election defeat.

However, it remains uncertain whether President Biden's already significantly lowered approval ratings will rebound. According to U.S. CBS News, a recent Gallup poll showed President Biden's approval rating at 42%, the lowest among first-year presidents in history except for former President Donald Trump.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.