supply chain

Panic Buying is Back: How Supply Chain Issues Are Mainly to Blame

It's happening again. Toilet paper aisles - depleted. Store shelves - empty. Panic buying is back.

Some stores are already putting limits on items. Costco is limiting purchases of toilet paper, paper towels and cleaning supplies.

But the Delta variant isn't the only factor driving this; there are some pretty big supply chain problems.

Costco, for instance, is struggling to find the trucks, drivers and shipping containers needed to get items into stores and one expert tells us these supply chain issues are impacting industries across the board.

"Behind the scenes, we're seeing material shortages, labor issues, all across the United States and overseas. It's becoming quite pervasive. And it's actually becoming a compound factor," said Jeffrey Rossi, of the public accounting firm CohnReznick.

Rossi said he's seen everything from the local deli to Aerospace impacted. He said the auto industry is especially being hit.

With continued shortages, some dealerships are even doing "I-O-Us." That means they're selling cars to people but then those customers will actually go back to get missing parts.

The main problem for all sectors is getting raw materials because the pandemic slowed almost all ports of entry. So, this is probably going to mean a hit to your wallet.

Rossi said while there's no need to panic buy, you should be prepared as a consumer.

"If you have your eye on something, maybe shop a little earlier than originally intended. If the supply is available, the early bird's going to get the worm," Rossi said.

He said that to combat this problem, more manufacturers are starting to get materials for their products here in the U.S.

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