Surely you have heard of the difficulties in buying the most varied technological gadgets: smartphones, tablets, game consoles… And USB flash drives are no exception. As soon as you have informed yourself about the issue, some sources blame the situation on the difficulties that maritime transport has experienced these months, others point to the shortage of microchips (which we already told you about). Although both reasons are compatible. Now we must also add the energy crisis in China.

China has an energy supply problem for its factories (and also for its homes). As always, there is no single explanation to find the root problem. We must look at the rise in coal prices (the main source of supply for the secondary sector of the Asian country), the increase in demand for electricity, and strict regulations by the Beijing government to reduce carbon emissions.

This government policy is responsible for the main cuts that affect 44% of the industry in 20 of the 31 regions of the country. It is a matter of debate. Initially, the purpose of the measure is good: to cut polluting emissions into the atmosphere. The problem is not the objective, but the means to achieve them, since it establishes consumption quotas and when they are exceeded there are cuts in production.

With these measures of the Beijing government, they also intend to influence the rise in coal prices (that large consumption keeps it up) and the galloping increase in demand.

Going back to factory outages, they influence the USB flash drive market because the vast majority are made there. In addition, it does not only affect this sector, the vast majority of the technology sector is affected, as we mentioned at the beginning of the post. The giants of the industry are suffering: Apple has had problems with the components of some of its latest releases.

While other companies that are also leaders in technology or that depend on it are facing similar problems: Nvidia, Mediatek, Dell, HP, Tesla or Microsoft. In fact, few sectors are saved, after all, we must not forget that, as they say, “China is the factory of the world”.

There has also been a lot of talk about maritime transport. Although, at the end of November 2021, it seems that the situation is returning to normal. Or at least there are signs of recovery. After months of uncertainty and skyrocketing prices, the final stretch of the year faces a drop in rates of over 50%.

This is due to issues such as the fact that production has been readjusted after the huge stoppage that occurred due to the first major confinements due to the covid-19 pandemic. In other words, the situation returns to its state before the spring of 2020. The most optimistic predict that this enormous drop will continue to be seen in the coming months. In any case, these interferences in logistics have also influenced the difficulties in having stocks of USBs.

Although we must not lose sight of the evolution of the coronavirus pandemic. It should be remembered that Asian countries —with China in the lead— are committed to a “zero covid” policy. This implies closures and cessation of activities even more severe than those seen in the West and that especially affect the transport of goods.

As we have told you, pen drives are manufactured in China and must be brought by ship —again, most products are transported by sea. But the good thing about crises is that you learn from them and you can find solutions to improve. The collapse experienced in the maritime routes can help to bet on other alternatives for transport such as the railway lines between Asia and Europe.

Prevention is better than waiting, tips for not running out of your flash drives

Do not panic. Sometimes the information can err on the side of alarmism. The fact that there are difficulties does not mean that it is an impossible mission to get products from our China USB flash drive Factory these days. The main advice is to act as far in advance as possible. The shipments, although slow, are arriving.

In fact, logistics companies are making efforts to overcome these drawbacks. But we must never lose sight of the fact that the specific model we want for our campaign may not be available when we want it.

But this does not imply having the volumes that existed before the pandemic. So it is better that you act with maximum anticipation and more in these times of the end of the year. With the Christmas holidays in sight, the need for corporate gifts increases (either to clients or to our team). Promotional pen drives are a recurring gift because they are practical and give a company image aligned with the new times.

The advantage of working in advance not only influences ensuring the availability of the product. Situations of product shortages in the markets are usually accompanied by price increases. So acting with some foresight will prevent you from losing your budget.

As always, if you have any questions you can contact us. We will advise you on the stock situation, and which model will not bring you problems for your campaign. Everyone will be able to have their advertising USB stick. We would also like to hear about your experiences with the global logistics situation and how it has affected your sales or branding promotions.