From beef bowls in Tokyo to chicken rolls in London, consumers are beginning to feel the pinch from the surge in costs washing over the global economy. The rebound in economic activity from coronavirus restrictions has exposed shortages across the supply chain, with companies scrambling to find workers, ships and fuel to power factories, threatening recovery and affecting all aspects of life. Germany cut its forecast for 2021 growth from 3.7% to 2.4% as supply bottlenecks hamper output. Coal prices in China are at near record highs. In the United States, the average retail cost of a gallon of gas is at a seven-year high. The U.K. faces an acute shortage of warehouse workers, truckers and butchers, exacerbating global supply chain problems and leading Britain's biggest chicken producer to warn that the country's 20-year binge on cheap food is coming to an end as food price inflation potentially hits double digits from the tidal wave of costs.
