Despite the Ambassador Bridge's reopening late Sunday, the economic effects of the week-long closure of a prime U.S./Canada trade corridor will be felt by the auto industry and others for weeks, experts say.
Auto production will still be affected as automakers and their suppliers scramble to get parts to plants on time for this week's run. The border blockade is another supply chain hit on top of several the automakers have had to battle through in the last year. Dealer lots are near empty while the demand remains strong, leading to record-high prices.
"Even if everything started flowing smoothly across the Ambassador Bridge today, you would still have trucks that were redirected, shipments that were stalled, plants that were shut down, shifts that were rescheduled and products that didn't get to market," said Patrick Anderson, president and CEO of Lansing-based Anderson Economic Group.
