If you’re waiting to buy just the right gift this holiday season, shop early or prepare for some disappointment. Store shelves and digital marketplaces will offer limited options this year amid unprecedented supply chain breakages and backlogs, including global shortages of semiconductor chips, dock traffic created by COVID-19 absences and limited labor supply, and factory shutdowns in China. For holiday shoppers, just-in-time delivery may be a little too late.

As we approach peak shipping season, when retailers stock up for the holidays, the chaotic situation is only getting worse, particularly at ports in the United States. The Southern California ports that process nearly 50% of America’s imports are hitting new records for congestion, with dozens of ships carrying some 500,000 shipping containers stuck offshore or racking up port fees.