SAN ANTONIO — From food to toiletries, you can see a shortage of items. The reason? Problems with the supply chain. Here are some Money Smart ways to get through these uncertain times.
Products that were once readily available are getting hard to find and becoming more expensive. The current congestion at the ports, a worker shortage including a lack of truck drivers are making it difficult to restock shelves.
“The pandemic while it has lasted awhile, the consumer came back much quicker than people anticipated. People started buying right off the bat,” said Karl Eggerss, Principal CAPTRUST. “Those goods and all that demand rebounded very quickly. Everybody was caught off guard.”
With sparse shelves, people have begun panic-buying once again. Stores have been forced to limit purchases on certain items. It’s unclear how long this supply chain issue will last but there are ways you can manage through the crisis.
“I think there’s something in between. I’m going to call it bridge prepping, keeping some extra toiletries on board, keeping some extra food in the cupboard as well. I wouldn’t be going and digging a bunker and prepping for the next 2-3 years,” said Eggerss. “I do think a lot of these things are temporary. A lot of these things will work themselves out over time. But the key word is – over time.”
Eggerss also recommends reviewing your budget, expenses and savings. He adds that people can hedge against rising prices by making certain investments.
“To protect against inflation is to actually own the inflation. Actually own the things that are going up in price. You think about gas prices going up, you think about food prices going up, you could invest in commodities in a lot of different ways,” said Eggerss.