Amazon Prime Day is here, and sellers are worried

(Image credit: Edward Smith / Getty Images)

Amazon sellers are bracing for supply chain issues to complicate Amazon's Prime Day, the online retail giant's two-day sales event that kicks off on Monday, CNBC reports. Many businesses are struggling to keep goods in stock as demand returns after the coronavirus pandemic forced factories to shut down around the world. Supply chains have faced further disruptions due to shipping bottlenecks and other issues, including a new outbreak in China's Guangdong province that prompted restrictions at one of the world's busiest ports.

The shipping problems are affecting small- and medium-sized Amazon sellers who rely on imports from China. "In 42 years in this business, I've seen a lot of challenges, but I've not seen anything like this," said Isaac Larian, CEO of Bratz doll maker MGA Entertainment.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.