COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF

Adidas sees US$1.2 bln sales hit

German sportswear company Adidas warned on Wednesday of a 1 billion euro (US$1.2 billion) hit to sales from factory closures in COVID-hit Vietnam and supply chain bottlenecks that it expects to affect business into next year.

Shares in the company fell more than 5% as it became the latest multinational to report manufacturing disruptions and shipping delays as the global economy rebounds from the worst effects of the pandemic.

Factory closures in Vietnam from July to September and a gradual re-opening since October meant Adidas had lost capacity for 100 million items in the second half of 2021, finance chief Harm Ohlmeyer told journalists.

That was exacerbated by delays to container shipping at both origin and destination ports, with a third of shipments leaving Asia with significant delays, Ohlmeyer added.

The lost capacity will wipe 1 billion euros off total sales across the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022 even after mitigation actions, with the sourcing network set to be mostly back to normal by the end of this year, Adidas said. -Nampa/Reuters