Christmas: Expert warns of increase in toy prices

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info

Despite the reassuring words of the Government regarding the recent fuel shortages, a lack of warehouse workers and lorry drivers could impact Christmas shopping deliveries for many retailers including Next. Its CEO Lord Simon Wolfson has issued a warning on a possible rise in shipping costs, clothing prices, homeware products and goods such as sofas and beds that are expensive to import.

The warning comes as the company itself is doing well.

Having crashed to just under £34 in April 2020, as Covid swept across the country, shares in Next are at record highs of nearly £84 helped by another period of better-than-expected results.

Profit forecasts have been upped for the fourth time this year after turnover rose 5 percent to £2.1bn and profits by 8.5 percent to £290m.

But Lord Wolfson said “things may not be as good as they appear today,” with higher costs and labour shortages likely to “moderate demand” in the months ahead.

“We anticipate that, without some relaxation of immigration rules, we are likely to experience some degradation in our service in the run-up to Christmas,” he said.

“For the sake of the wider UK economy, we hope that the Government will take a more decisive approach to the looming skills crisis in warehouses, restaurants, hotels, care homes and many seasonal industries.

“A demand-led approach to ensuring the country has the skills it needs is now vital.”

As a Brexit supporter, Lord Wolfson said he expects the current Government to act faster now that the country is supposed to be in total control of its immigration.

“Ultimately, Britain gets to determine its own immigration policy, [Brexit] doesn’t decide what that immigration policy should be.

“What matters now is not what the argument was then – we now have control of our immigration system – it is how we design it. It has to be a system that responds to skills shortages and particularly things like seasonal peaks.

“The HGV crisis was foreseen and widely predicted for many months.

“The fact those [emergency] visas only happened as [petrol station] queues started forming, when it had been forewarned so loudly by so many, is indicative of a system that doesn’t respond fast enough.

DON’T MISS: 
One rule for them! Brexiteer savages ‘entitled’ Macron [OPINION] 
Germany faces winter Covid explosion [REPORT] 
UK hits back at France after Channel Tunnel threat over fishing rights [INSIGHT]

“As it turned out, our gloomiest projections, made at the nadir of the crisis, were a long way off the mark.”

Boris Johnson tackled the fuel shortage on Tuesday during a speech saying the situation was “stabilising” and advising everyone to fill up their tanks as normal.

Regarding the end of year festivities, he said everything was being put in place to “get through to Christmas and beyond.”

His Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng notably said that troops will appear on the roads in a matter of days to help transport fuel.

A solution that is supposed to ease the shortages expected by Lord Wolfson.

“It takes, sometimes, a few days to get troops on the ground”, said Mr Kwarteng.

“We have decided to do that. I think in the next couple of days you will see some soldiers driving tankers.”

Source: Read Full Article