Energy price jumps, disrupted supply chains, increased transport costs, delivery failures for wood or steel: According to the foreign trade association BGA, the Ukraine war and the sanctions against Russia have serious consequences and could lead to a wave of bankruptcies in the transport industry. The corona lockdown in the Chinese port metropolis of Shanghai is currently causing additional burdens. “This disrupts supply chains worldwide,” said Carsten Taucke, member of the executive committee of the Federal Association of Wholesale, Foreign Trade, Services (BGA), on Wednesday in Berlin.
Sharply increased energy prices and the lack of drivers are affecting the German transport industry. “Small and medium-sized companies in particular are no longer able to cope with the rising diesel and gas prices,” said Taucke. The decision to reduce mineral oil tax for three months is a first step in the right direction, but it is not enough. “We need acute help. It’s not getting better, it’s getting worse,” said the chairman of the BGA traffic committee. “In order not to endanger the supply of the population, a wave of insolvencies in the transport industry must be averted.”
If the production of wooden pallets in Germany comes to a standstill because your Nagel suppliers can no longer get steel from Russia, “we will no longer be able to deliver on pallets,” said Taucke. However, some products could only be transported in this way. According to the Federal Association of Wooden Packaging, Pallets and Export Packaging (HPE), the first companies could be forced to shut down their production in a few weeks.
A possible ban on coal imports, as planned by the EU Commission as part of stricter sanctions against Russia, will lead to rising energy prices, according to Taucke. The 27 EU countries must decide whether the sanctions will be imposed as proposed. A partially demanded embargo on gas and oil will “definitely be very, very expensive,” said the head of the logistics company Nagel-Group.
According to Taucke, the sanctions against Russia and Belarus are affecting the supply chains in the region, which is crucial for transport between Asia and Europe. “Air, sea and rail freight traffic is disrupted or in some cases completely interrupted.” Switching to alternative routes or means of transport also increases the costs. Added to this is the lack of personnel: “Many drivers come from Ukraine and Russia. We cannot replace the failures,” said Taucke. “There is currently a shortage of around 60,000 to 80,000 professional drivers in Germany.”
According to the information, almost a third of wholesalers and foreign traders are currently directly affected by sanctions and counter-sanctions in the course of the Ukraine war. In addition to massive increases in energy costs and purchase prices, there are also financing and insurance problems as well as delivery failures, for example with wood, steel and aluminum. (dpa)