Supply Chain Issues: Here's One Good Reason to Do Your Holiday Shopping ASAP

At this point of the year, many people are focused on trying to pay off the debt they racked up in the course of summertime travel. Others are grappling with back-to-school expenses.

So given that it's still early September, you may not be all that focused on checking items off of your holiday shopping list. But actually, now may be a good time to start your holiday shopping if you can afford to.

Supply chain issues could mess with your shopping plans

Many consumers remember the 2021 holiday season as one wracked with frustration. That year, supply chain backlogs came to a head, causing a world of stress for people who were trying to shower family members with gifts.

Unfortunately, we may be in for somewhat of a repeat scenario this year. And it's all because of drought conditions in Panama.

Panama is in the middle of one of its driest seasons on record. Because that's resulting in lower water levels in the Panama Canal, officials are putting restrictions on vessel weights and daily traffic through the waterway.

Right now, those restrictions aren't impacting U.S. retailers all that much. But if drought conditions persist and the situation worsens, we could be in for a repeat of 2021 to some degree.

That's why it could pay to kick off your holiday shopping ASAP. If there are specific items on your list already, head to the stores (or look online) and aim to check them off if prices seem reasonable. If you wait too long, you may not be able to find all of the things you're looking for.

Be careful when shopping for the holidays in advance

The advice to start shopping for the holidays in September hinges on one key thing -- your ability to afford extra purchases right now. If you have money in savings earmarked for non-emergency expenses, you can dip into your cash reserves to cover your holiday purchases. Similarly, if you're commonly left with extra money in your paycheck after covering your essential expenses, then you can use that cash to buy gifts now, while store shelves are still nicely stocked.

But one thing you don't want to do is rack up a credit card balance you can't pay off in full because you're doing your holiday shopping ahead of time. Many people specifically save money in the months leading up to the holidays to cover their costs. But if you were planning to save well for the holidays in September, October, and November, it means that it may be too soon to do a lot of shopping because you don't yet have the money.

Either way, if you're going to do your holiday shopping in September, spend a little time getting yourself organized first. Figure out exactly what you can afford to spend, and make a list of gifts and purchases by order of priority so you know where to focus your resources and efforts.

With any luck, the supply chain disruptions caused by drought conditions in Panama will end up being minimal in the context of holiday shopping. But we just don't know how things will shake out. So if you have the money now and would rather not take the risk, start shopping ASAP to avoid having to make compromises.