European Shops Rush to Order Christmas Stock Amid Surging Costs

Experts say European retailers are rushing to place their Christmas orders early as soaring shipping costs and trade route disruption threaten holiday deliveries.

For the last few months, vessels belonging to Western firms have been attacked in the Red Sea by Houthi rebels backing Hamas in its war with Israel, driving shipping prices up.

Container prices, which peaked in January and briefly declined, have rebounded sharply in recent weeks.

One business told the BBC that increased costs were likely to feed through to the price of big-ticket items such as white goods.

Boss of the ‘Buy It Direct’ group, Nick Glynn, owns several online retailers including Appliances Direct and Laptops Direct, which are having to plan and book well in advance to make sure their shipments arrive on time.

Because they are planning ahead, he said he didn’t think Black Friday and Christmas stock would be affected.