Businesses keeping a close eye on China's new COVID lockdowns as they continue
SAN ANTONIO — China's newest COVID-19 lockdown is having an impact on local businesses.
We're being told the longer it lasts the trickier things will become.
George Saliba said he's facing an uphill battle when it comes to finding parts.
“Seven items took me four supply houses to fill those seven items,” Saliba said.
The CEO of George Plumbing Company said he's been dealing with a parts shortage since the early days of the pandemic.
Recently, he's noticed it's getting a bit worse.
“That's all I do all day long for eight hours, is trying to find parts for our next day. Whenever they are going to lock down China or any part of the Far East. It impacts a lot of the raw materials,” Saliba said.
With cities in China, including Shanghai, placed on strict lockdowns it's put some businesses in a tough spot.
Saliba said about 40 percent of their raw materials come from China.
He and Charlie Drago with Monarch Trophy Studio said it won't put things at a complete halt but is having a financial impact.
“The pricing is just has quadrupled in some things,” Saliba said.
“The freight to get it here nowadays is almost 10 times what it was pre COVID,” Drago said.
Drago and his team are still hard at work to keep orders filled adding they're fortunate to have thought ahead.
“What we tried to do is we try to get ahead of the ordering. Probably 50% of the items that we use just the parts come from the Orient. We're really having problems, because a lot of the products we get come from China, and the factories are completely closed right now,” Drago said.
So, what will happen when the lockdown is lifted?
Adam Blanchard with Double Diamond Transport explains we'll likely see more ships coming in than normal.
While that sounds good Blanchard said it also could prove as an issue.
"What that does is cause a huge could have resulted in a huge constraint on the availability of trucks. So, this is an issue that is going to have a huge impact on us," Blanchard said.
Everyone says this is not a doomsday scenario by any means.
It is something they're all keeping a close eye on to ensure you're still able to get your products without draining your wallet.
