How can we explain shortages in household appliances?

Shortages seem global: car, wood, smartphones and especially in household appliances now.

Since April this year some manufacturers of household appliances, such as Whirlpool for example, have sounded the alarm. They lacked electronic components and mainly chips to assemble their devices. Especially refrigerators and, above all, the most innovative high-end appliances that are by nature highly electronic intensive.

Des puces électroniques que l’on trouve presque partout. Ces composants électroniques sont le 4^ème produit le plus échangé au monde. Et une pénurie en amont de la chaine de production signifie en aval de nombreux produits qui n’arrivent plus sur le marché.

There has also been talk of a potential shortage of toys as electronic toys are becoming more and more numerous. So there are risks of running out of some toys in December for Christmas, although some distributors have explained that those that ordered on time would be delivered well.

Why all the shortages? A simple reason for the imbalance between supply and demand. COVID and its confinements abruptly shut down many production lines, from extraction to delivery. Companies, faced with economic uncertainty, emptied their stocks and avoided rebuilding them too quickly. And then suddenly, household and business demand recovers. And this demand is strong because there is a phenomenon of catch-up, of compensation. In such a context, it is impossible to track the intensity of demand, which first creates shortages and then increases in the prices of raw materials and components.

I have been busy gathering elder flower here too and taut my friends young daughter how to make elder flower cordia … Http: / / t.co / ALdYzjVMOU

— Niamh Shields Sun May 26 21:08:03 +0000 2019

What are the main consequences of this shortage for the consumer?

There are many of them. First, there is a shortage of certain products. But also spare parts. There are therefore consumers whose dishwashers fail and for whom there is no solution, either by supplying the defective part or by buying a new dishwasher.

Second, in some cases, price increases for rare components will be passed on to customers. Which is also detestable.

Jusqu’à quand ces pénuries peuvent-elles durer ? On estime qu’au 2^ème trimestre de l’année prochaine, voire à la fin du premier, il va y avoir une double mouvement qui va contribuer à faire disparaître ces pénuries. D’abord, la croissance, et donc la demande va se tasser. Et ensuite, les chaines de valeurs vont retrouver leur rythme pré-covid et les goulots d’étranglement dans la logistique vont se résorber.