According to a new CNBC Supply Chain Survey*, only 36 percent of supply chain managers expect retail inventories to normalize in the second half of 2023.
The same 36 percent expect inventories to return to normal in 2024, including 21 percent in the first half of the year and 15 percent in the second half. Of the remainder, 6 percent expected a normalized inventory environment in 2025 or later, and 23 percent did not know or were unsure.
Other survey findings include:
- Slightly more than half of survey respondents said they would keep their excess inventory in warehouses. A little over one-quarter (27 percent) are selling excess inventory on the secondary market because of high storage costs.
- Forty percent of logistics managers responded that they are not cutting orders, while a little under one-fifth (18 percent) are cutting orders by 30 percent.
- Nearly half (44 percent) of survey respondents said they are passing on at least half of their increased costs, if not more, to consumers.
- Almost half (48 percent) said the more significant inflationary pressures are warehouse costs, followed by the “Other” category, which includes rent and labor, at 40 percent. Late charges were 10 percent.
*Ninety logistics managers representing the American Apparel and Footwear Association, ITS Logistics, WarehouseQuote, and the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP), participated in the survey conducted between March 3 to 21 and shared information on their current inventories and the inflationary pressures they face and often pass on to the consumer.
