Rising Costs and Logistics

More recently with the US economy trying its best to work out of recession, people have begun to question how costs of every day products have played a roll in the current economic situation. Even with the economy in a slump there are so many products shipping every day and people are buying them despite the increases in price. Food and supplies in particular have been financially at an all time high. This includes restaurant pricing as well as pricing in the supermarkets. Many times it can depend on what part of the country we are talking about but in this instance, the rising costs of food and every day products have been strongly affecting the economy. For many people the cause has led back to logistics and freight costs.

So many factors should be taken into account for calculating costs. Logistics is usually a small part of these costs but lately they have become a much larger part. As international logistics has come at a higher price, produce and imported items have become higher priced as well. Couple this with weather condition issues and items like produce will have a significant increase in costs. Getting lettuce and tomatoes in the winter have become a need, especially for restaurants and smaller food suppliers. The sandwiches that people were buying for lunch every day could be an additional dollar or may no longer come with the fries they used to. These are all part of the rising costs and a domino affect begins to occur. We are becoming a global economy and international shipping has become an integral part of that. This is why it is so important to keep track of all costs in a detailed way. The costs of food and supplies going up even by small amounts can leave a much greater impact on the global economy. Rising costs have always been linked to supply chain management, but economists are seeing more of a cause and effect relationship now with the economy still fighting to get out of recession.