DIY getting more expensive

Will the coronavirus crisis now be followed by a raw materials and logistics crisis? No - it isn't on its way, it is already here, at least in the European home improvement and gardening industry. The incident in the Suez Canal involving the Ever Given container ship was at best the trigger or a symptom of a dangerous situation that could blow up into a crisis at any time.
The fact that the industry (like large parts of the global economy) is ­more or less reliant on sub-suppliers in the Far East and above all in China is nothing new. The Suez incident just made it tangible. Containers running into the hundreds with private label garden furniture for a large DIY store chain, electronic components for electrical appliances, decorative garden items, raw materials - a whole bunch of products that should have been processed further or sold for the 2021 garden season was stuck in the eye of the needle separating the suppliers from Europe. The season was practically over by the time the ship was permitted to continue its journey on 7 July.
Production in the Far East is just a part of the problem, however. The rapid increase in demand has driven up the price of building materials in Europe. Timber is being exported to the USA and China in even greater quantities than before, and plastic is in short supply. Taken all together, these factors are causing prices to shoot up at double-digit growth rates in weeks.
At the same time (and logically), transport prices are hitting previously unknown heights. Shipping rates are even reported to have increased tenfold. Home Depot has therefore concluded a contract with a shipping company for the exclusive use of a ship for its own requirements. There are not enough empty containers available. And on the streets of Europe, not enough truck drivers -Germany alone reportedly has a deficit of 50 000 drivers.

How is the sector reacting? Manufacturers' associations were quick to warn of a price hike. Conflicts have nevertheless arisen. In Spain, for example, the majority of manufacturers complain that they have been penalised by the trade. Their association has advised them to claim force majeure.
The European umbrella association of DIY and garden manufacturers Hima, together with the retail…