- Milkshake is off the menu at McDonald’s, as the UK grapples with supply chain issues
- Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit is the next space company to go public
Post-Brexit logistics crisis hits Mcdonald’s
McDonald’s (US:MCD) has not got milk.
In a statement this morning, the fast food giant warned that its popular milkshakes and bottled drinks would be temporarily unavailable in all its approximately 1,300 restaurants across the UK. The culprit? “Supply chain issues”, as the nation grapples with a severe staff shortage post Brexit.
This comes less than a week after restaurant chain Nando’s announced that it was forced to close 50 locations, after suffering similar issues obtaining supplies of chicken.
The disruption at two of the country’s most popular food chains are just some of the most high-profile signs that the UK’s supply chain is fraying at the edges, after the problems were largely obscured to the public by the Covid economic crisis.
The British Poultry Council has reportedly warned that staff shortages have forced chicken producers to cut weekly supply by up to 10 per cent, while other trade bodies have estimated the UK has a shortfall of about 90,000 heavy goods vehicle drivers delivering items like milk. EU workers have typically made up a large proportion of lorry drivers and chicken production staff.
Last October, Investors’ Chronicle revealed that a government-backed scheme had trained less than 1 per cent of the estimated 50,000 border agents needed to maintain smooth trade post-Brexit.
Branson’s Virgin Orbit prepares for Spac lift off
In the investment communities of Twitter (US:TWTR) and Reddit, hopeful shareholders often declare their favourite stocks are going “to the moon”.
Now another soon-to-be-listed company is planning to do just that.
Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit, a spin-off of his space tourism company Virgin Galactic (US:SPCE), is going public via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, it was announced today. US aircraft giant Boeing (US:BA) will be investing in the deal that values Branson’s business at more than $3bn (£2.2bn).
The public debut of Virgin Orbit, which provides launches of small satellites, will come not long after Branson travelled to the edge of space in a Virgin Galactic aircraft in July, narrowly beating Jeff Bezos in the multibillionaires’ suborbital space race. But does the flight of private enterprise into space represent more than just an ego trip for the world’s richest men? Some of our recent articles consider this question.
Read more:
Lift-off: Why a new and more investable space race could add some stardust to portfolios
Is Netflix a space exploration company?
Touching the face of God: the mixed enthusiasm for space among aerospace and defence companies
