Empty Shelves... The US, a 'Land of Abundance,' Falls Short

Logistics Crisis Worsens Amid Omicron Variant Spread and Severe Weather
Stock Prices Plunge Over Supermarket Performance Concerns

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The logistics crisis in the United States is worsening as the spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant infection coincides with severe weather conditions.

A target store shelf in the Southern California area is completely empty. (Photo by Twitter)

According to U.S. media on the 11th (local time), there has been a noticeable increase in people sharing photos of empty supermarket shelves on Twitter recently. The disappearance of bread, milk, cheese, and other items from the shelves of well-known supermarket chains such as Walmart, Trader Joe's, and Kroger across the U.S. is spreading day by day.

This phenomenon has occurred as the number of Omicron variant infections has surged, leading to a reduction in truck operations and supermarket employees being unable to come to work. Goods are not being received on time, or even if there is stock, it is not being displayed on the shelves.

The Food Marketing Institute of the U.S. has stated that more than 50% of its member companies are operating with staffing levels below normal.

Severe weather is also exacerbating the problem. Due to recent heavy snowfall, many vegetable shelves in supermarkets near Virginia and Maryland, where roads were closed, remain empty. Pharmacies and liquor stores are also affected.

This phenomenon has been observed in central, western, and southern states such as Arizona, Washington, and Texas, indicating a nationwide issue.

At Costco in New Jersey, which the reporter visited a day earlier, popular bottled water brands were not available. Fox News reported that the supply of beef and pork has also noticeably decreased as processing plant workers have not been coming to work.

Those dissatisfied with this situation are posting photos of empty shelves with the hashtag ‘#BareShelvesBiden’ to criticize the Biden administration’s response.

The logistics crisis is also impacting corporate earnings. On this day, Vivek Sankaran, CEO of the supermarket chain Albertsons, mentioned supply issues. CEO Sankaran predicted, "There will be more supply problems over the next 4 to 6 weeks."

Concerns over earnings due to supply shortages caused Albertsons’ stock price to plunge by 9% that day. Shares of other supermarket chains such as Walmart and Kroger also fell together.

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