Economists expect shipping problems at large ports in the United States as well as the subsequent shortage in goods and price increases to persist into the middle of 2022 amid the ongoing supply chain crisis. Roughly 77 ships are currently waiting outside docks in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, carrying a staggering $24 billion worth of goods waiting to be offloaded, CNBC reported, citing economists at Goldman Sachs. And according to Goldman economist Ronnie Walker, the situation does not look set to improve in the immediate future as officials struggle to find a solution to the issue. “Backlogs and elevated shipping costs are likely to persist at least through the middle of next year because no immediate solution for the underlying supply–demand imbalance at U.S. ports is available,” Walker said in a note to clients. However, Walker noted that the pressures “should soon begin to ease” but only “slightly …