In China, the biggest market for many of the world’s smart devices, the global chip shortage has for months been a “chip famine”. During the onset of Covid-19 a year ago, Chinese parents with homeschooled children bought up tablets and laptops, causing long waits. Then, as the rest of the world followed suit and factory problems bit, chip demand started far outweighing supply.
As a result, there have been shortages of electric vehicles, washing machines and even toasters. There’s bad news for international travellers waiting out Beijing’s 21-day quarantine regime too: Nintendo says its Switch gaming consoles could be affected.
The founder of Xiaomi, the country’s biggest maker of smart home appliances, warned that consumers could be facing higher prices for electronics for as long as two years.