[영어독해] Limits On Toilet Paper And Cleaning Supplies Are Back At Costco

[기사 요약]

코스트코, 화장지와 청소용품 구매 제한

코로나19 델타 변이의 여파로 세계 최대 창고형 할인점 코스트코가 다시 한번 화장지 품귀 현상을 겪고 있다.
코스트코는 휴지, 생수, 청소용품 등의 주요 품목 구매 제한 조치를 실시하겠다고 밝혔다.
코스트코 최고재무책임자(CFO)는 이번 분기 실적 발표 '어닝 콜'에서 배송 지연과 트럭 운전사 부족이 이번 제한 조치의 주요 요인이라고 설명했다.
그는 지난해 코로나19 초기 고객들이 화장지와 생필품을 사재기하던 상황과는 달리 코스트코는 충분한 상품을 보유하고 있다고 덧붙였다.
CFO는 회사가 내년 컨테이너 수송을 위해 선박 3척을 임대하여 원활한 공급에 대비하고 있다고 강조했다.
그는 또한 이번 분기 물가 상승 또한 이번 사태에 한몫하고 있다고 전했다.

Photo by Omar Abascal on Unsplash

[기사 전문]

Limits On Toilet Paper And Cleaning Supplies Are Back At Costco

The days of toilet paper shortages may not be over just yet: Costco has announced new limits on purchases of certain household items as supply chain issues bedevil the company and the delta variant spreads.
The company is putting "limitations on key items" such as toilet paper, bottled water and cleaning supplies so it can meet any uptick in demand due to the COVID-19 surge, Costco Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti said during the company's latest earnings call on Thursday.
He did not specify how many items customers would be allowed to buy.
"A year ago there was a shortage of merchandise," Galanti told investors during the call.
Now Galanti said the retailer has plenty of merchandise, but delivery delays are the issue, citing "short-term changes to trucking" and "delivery need" as the main factors.
In the meantime, Galanti said Costco is trying to stay ahead of the curve by continuing to place orders early to get stores what they need.
In an effort to address the delivery issues, Galanti told investors that the company has chartered three ocean vessels for the next year to transport several thousand containers between the U.S., Asia and Canada.
Each ship will be able to carry 800 to 1,000 containers at a time.
The membership-only warehouse retailer said it has seen an increase in overall price inflation on its products this quarter, estimated to be between 3.5% and 4.5%, Galanti said.
courtesy of https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/09/24/1040471872/limits-toilet-paper-cleaning-supplies-costco-delta-covid

Limits On Toilet Paper And Cleaning Supplies Are Back At Costco

[영어 요약]
Costco, one of the largest retail stores in the world, has once again been confronted with difficulties in meeting the demand for certain merchandise: Covid-19 pandemic has sent the retailer to restrict purchases of key items including toilet paper, bottled water, cleaning supplies, and so on. Costco Chief Financial Officer (CFO) cited a surge in delta variant and delivery delays as the major factors in the limitation on such items during the company's latest earnings call. However, the CFO pointed out that things were different from a year ago when it had suffered panic buying shopping sprees and now it has ample supplies this time. In an attempt to cope with the supply chain issue, the company has come up with a solution to charter three ocean vessels in order to transport thousands of containers next year. Costco has seen a rise in inflation by 3.5% ~ 4.5% on its products this quarter, adding more pressure to the supply issue.