Puma announced Wednesday that it has raised its sales forecast for this year, despite constraints from a supply chain blockage due to covid-19 in Vietnam, port congestion and container shortagesReuters reported.

Factories in Vietnam, considered a major supplier to the footwear industry, had to be shut down following the outbreak of Covid-19 outbreaks; however, the factory owners expect to fully resume operations starting in the second half of next year.

Puma CEO Bjorn Gulden, quoted by "executivedigest", mentioned that the company is also facing difficulties due to port congestion and a shortage of container ships, which have increased shipping costs, along with a "very difficult market situation" in China.

"We anticipate that high demand for our products will continue, but we also see that supply constraints will continue to be an issue for the rest of the year," the executive explains in a statement.

Third-quarter sales rose 20.41TP2Q exchange-adjusted to €1.9 billion, while operating profit soared to €229 million, above the average of estimates put forward by analysts.

Puma's sales grew 31% in the Americas and 22% in Europe, Middle East and Africa, increasing only 1.7% in Asia / Pacific due to ongoing tensions in China and blockades in markets such as Japan.

In late March, Western brands like Puma faced online attacks in China over threats about stopping buying cotton from Xinjiang after reports of human rights abuses against Uighur Muslims.

Puma also indicated that it expects full-year adjusted sales to increase by at least 25%, up from the previous forecast of at least 20%.

For its part, rival Nike cut its fiscal 2022 sales expectations last month, citing delays during the Christmas shopping season due to the supply chain crisis.