Published by Wanda Rich
Posted on May 23, 2022
2 min readLast updated: February 7, 2026
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BERLIN (Reuters) – Lockdowns in China are having greater impact on global supply chains than the war in Ukraine and will be felt even after they are lifted, said the head of Deutsche Post DHL Group’s freight business.
BERLIN (Reuters) – Lockdowns in China are having greater impact on global supply chains than the war in Ukraine and will be felt even after they are lifted, said the head of Deutsche Post DHL Group’s freight business.
China renewed COVID-19 lockdowns in major centres in March and April, hitting production and consumption and heightening risks for parts of the global economy heavily dependent on the country.
“After an opening, traffic jams will probably form in front of U.S. and European ports,” DHL’s Tim Scharwath told Reuters, adding that “it will take longer than we had thought until the trade system normalises again”.
He said that global supply chain problems would probably continue beyond the crucial Christmas shopping season and into next year.
“China is the workbench of the world,” Scharwath said. “All goods from high-tech to fashion are affected by the developments in Shanghai,” he said, adding that the speed with which China lifts all restrictions will be crucial.
Shipments normally arrive in Europe and North America little by little, Scharwath said, adding that a flood of containers could overwhelm ports unless China ends the lockdowns gradually.
(Reporting by Matthias Inverardi; Writing by Miranda Murray and Zuzanna Szymanska; Editing by David Goodman)
A supply chain is a system of organizations, people, activities, information, and resources involved in supplying a product or service to a consumer.
Logistics refers to the detailed coordination of complex operations involving people, facilities, and supplies to ensure the efficient movement of goods.
Economic growth is the increase in the production of goods and services in an economy over a period of time, often measured by GDP.
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