WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden met with CEOs from some of the biggest companies in the country Monday.
Walmart, Best Buy and Kroger were among the companies represented in the meeting.
The CEOs thanks Biden for helping ease supply chain issues.
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said he expects stores to be prepared to handle the demand of the holiday season.
“Our inventory levels are up more than 10 percent. While we’re all concerned about the supply chain, we have more inventory than we did a year ago and have the inventory that we need to be able to support the business,” McMillion said.
President Biden was scheduled to give remarks after his meeting with the CEOs. However, the White House said he will, instead, address the country on Wednesday.
During the president’s speech, the White House says he’ll discuss what’s being done to lower everyday costs for families.
The nation’s supply chain challenges have become a point of focus for the White House in recent weeks because they’re leading to higher prices and shortages in some areas ahead of the holiday season.
The administration has largely attributed these issues to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Biden said last week that he’s initiating a three-month effort called the “Port Action Plan” to invest in U.S. ports and relieve bottlenecks, since much of the nation’s goods come in through a handful of ports.
Part of the plan includes moving from operating some ports at 40 hours a week to operating ports 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Resources are also being provided to other ports to help reduce congestion and undo the damage caused by the pandemic.
