Pandemic Shopping Causing Shipping Delays For Christmas

As the holidays get closer, it looks like we're already running low on one item's supply: shipping.

FedEx and UPS have both said most of their shipping capacity is already spoken for. Larger shippers that use their service will have to wait a little bit longer for holiday items, including the large companies like Amazon.

“There will be days within the holiday season where the industry will be over capacity,” Brie Carere, Chief Marketing Officer for FedEx, said in an interview.

Smaller companies like DHL have already said they filled up on holiday shipping much earlier than usual.

This leaves us with the option of dumping whatever excess shipping on the U.S. Postal Service, who is already stretched pretty thin throughout the pandemic.

Experts say the shortage of shipping will likely affect up to 7 million packages a day. Last year's total capacity was around 65.3 million packages per day, with around 67.9 million looking for space. The estimate for 2020's season, is 86.3 million packages looking for space with 79.1 million being shipped per day.

Satish Jindel with ShipMatrix Inc. said “Consumers should be prepared for deliveries to take extra days no matter which carrier is delivering their parcels."

So, be aware of what you're up against. Order early, and thank your postal carriers.

Read more at Hellenic Shipping News