The most expensive Christmas: rising shipping costs threaten to push up prices

The echoes of the 2021 crisis in the global supply chain are once again being heard, even if their effects are yet to be felt. There is no greater thermometer of the state of international trade than what it costs to transport a 40-foot container: across the board, it stands at $3,349, 136% above levels recorded in 2019, according to Drewry's composite index. The mix of geopolitical conflicts and climate change on both sides of the map has driven the price of ocean freight upwards, and with it increases the threat of experiencing a more expensive Christmas.