The Federal Trade Commission has required U.S. retailers and consumer product groups, including Amazon and Walmart, Surrender information about its supply chain when investigating bottleneck High prices affect the economy.

The move announced by the US competition regulator FTC on Monday will put pressure on US companies to defend their prices and business practices and take additional measures Relieve the backlog Before the holiday shopping season-this is an issue of increasing concern for the Biden administration.

“Supply chain disruptions are disrupting the supply and delivery of all kinds of goods, from computer chips and medicines to meat and wood,” FTC Chairman Lina Khan said in a statement.

“My new… research on the FTC will shed light on market conditions and business practices that may exacerbate these disruptions or cause asymmetric effects,” she added.

The FTC is seeking information from nine companies, including grocery chain Kroger, consumer products company Procter & Gamble, meat producer Tyson Foods and Foods company Kraft Heinz, and several wholesalers.

As the investigation was announced, President Joe Biden met with a group of key CEOs at the White House, emphasizing the importance of stability. supply chain Operations during holidays.

Although the US economy has been booming since Biden took office, the public’s perception of economic recovery and how the government handles economic recovery has been hit by soaring prices and, in some cases, delays and difficulty in obtaining products.

The FTC’s investigation may exacerbate tensions between US companies and the Biden administration because it involves a wide range of information requests and indicates that corporate actions may lead to a backlog.

The FTC stated that it will study whether supply chain disruptions can lead to “specific bottlenecks, shortages, anti-competitive behavior, or increase consumer prices.”

Biden is expected to speak on the supply chain on Monday, which will later be postponed to Wednesday. Earlier this month, as the Biden administration tried to put pressure on oil companies to ease inflationary pressures in its industry, the Federal Trade Commission also launched an investigation into high oil prices.

Large retailers expressed confidence that their efforts to bring goods into the country earlier than usual will help meet strong consumer demand. According to Matthew Shay, CEO of the National Retail Federation, history Sexual fiscal stimulus measures “stimulated” this demand.

“Overall, consumers are in a good position; they saved $4 trillion, they went shopping, and their sales this year have increased significantly. [and] We are looking forward to a great holiday,” Shay told CNN on Friday. “Because the retailer has prepared inventory [consumers] The gifts on their list will be found. “

Early data covering the long weekend of Thanksgiving shows In-store consumption A strong rebound from the level of pandemic suppression last year, but online spending is at the low end of analyst expectations.