Covid outbreaks in Chinese ports could cause global goods shortages

Combination of rise in demand for products as some countries reopen and lockdowns in some port cities mean prices could climb

An outbreak of Covid-19 in southern China has combined with the rapid reopening of the world economy and a shortage of shipping containers to cause a surge in transport costs that could fuel inflation and cause shortages of goods across the globe.

China reported 21 new coronavirus cases in the mainland on Wednesday with 15 of them in the vital industrial province of Guangdong where restrictions have been in place for several weeks to contain an outbreak linked to the Delta variant first detected in India.

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