American consumers are stocking up on food and other items in response to the coronavirus. CNBC reports that same-day and next-day services such as Amazon, Instacart and Walmart are experiencing delays in some regions due to increasing consumer orders.
Amazon Prime Now and Instacart shoppers say the normally speedy services have limited delivery availability or inform users that they won’t be able to place an order until the following day, according to the CNBC report.
The research firm Nielsen said in a report this week that sales of shelf-stable food items such as fruit snacks, dried beans and energy drinks jumped in the week ended Feb. 22 as the virus began to spread. “We expect the rush to stock up to have an almost immediate impact on supply chains for manufacturers of the most sought-after goods,” Nielsen said in the report.
The surge in orders seems to have overwhelmed delivery services as shoppers turn to online retailers due to product shortages at physical stores.
Fears over the virus have produced volatility on Wall Street and hit commodity markets hard. Traders fear the coronavirus could promote a recession. Although the United States has seen relatively little impact from the disease, America still faces a growing risk from the “still-evolving corrosive shock from the virus,” Bob Schwartz, senior economist at Oxford Economics, told NPR. How well the U.S. economy holds up “remains to be seen,” he adds. “The outcome will probably determine if the economy stays out of a recession this year.”
