New Delhi: The world may soon face a shortage of toilet paper. Wood pulp is used to make it. The world's largest wood pulp maker is Suzanne SA in Brazil. The company said the shortage of shipping containers could hamper the supply of wood pulp.
The cargo vessels that Sujano SA sends plugs into are called brake bulk. Walter Shelka, the company's CEO, says the growing demand for ships carrying ribbed steel containers has led to a shortage of brake bulk. All this is happening at a time when the demand for toilet paper in households is increasing and people have started storing it in large numbers for fear of shortage. Shelfa says shipping problems could make matters worse.
The Sao Paulo-based company exported less than expected in March and had to avoid some orders until April. The company is not getting brake bulk ships as before due to rising demand for cargo vessels. "All South American companies that export through brake bulk are facing this kind of problem," Shelfa said. Brazil is the largest supplier of pulp in the world and Sujano's share in the total supply of hardwood pulp in the world is one third. This hardwood pulp is used to make toilet paper.
The disturbance of the cargo market has sent shockwaves through global trade. There has been a lot of chaos, especially in food and agriculture products. Port traffic has been jammed, freight costs are rising and deliveries have slowed.
The rising container crisis in China has been lingering for months, but Suzanne's warning is the first major sign of trouble for other shipping markets. If this continues, freight rates will rise and so will inflation.
No comments:
Post a Comment