Ammo prices to skyrocket due to global gunpowder shortage caused by Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Palestine conflicts

12/12/2023 / By Arsenio Toledo

One of the United States’ largest ammunition manufacturers is warning that the average price of ammo is about to skyrocket as ongoing conflicts are leading to increased buying and an anticipated global shortage of gunpowder.

Vista Outdoor, a Minnesota-based designer and manufacturer of ammunition, sporting goods and outdoor recreational products, is also the parent company of several of America’s largest corporations that manufacture ammunition for the civilian market, including CCI, Federal and Remington.

In a statement, Vista Outdoor announced that world events are forcing its gunpowder suppliers to increase their prices by as much as 10 percent. This is forcing Vista Outdoor to increase how much it charges for ammunition.

“Due to world events, our suppliers have notified us of unprecedented demand for and an anticipated global shortage of gunpowder, and thus has increased our prices substantially,” said Vista Outdoor.

“We must therefore raise our pricing to help offset those increases,” added Vice President of Sales Brett Nelson. (Related: WWIII fears prompt panic buying of 5.56 ammo, triggering a 39% price surge within a week.)

Ammo prices to increase beginning Jan. 1, 2024

Along with Vista Outdoor’s three ammunition brands, other companies like SEVI-Shot and Speer have also announced price increases.

The prices for shotshells, rifle rounds and certain rimfire rounds like .22 WMR and .17 HMR are expected to increase by one to seven percent. The price of handgun rounds and .22 Long Rifle and .22 Short rounds are expected to increase by one to five percent.

The prices for primers – the chemicals or mechanisms responsible for causing the combustion that shoots the ammunition from the barrel of a firearm – are expected to increase by as much as five percent. Alliant Powder – another company owned by Vista Outdoor that manufactures smokeless gunpowder – also announced that its prices are surging by at least 10 percent due to limited availability.

Vista Outdoor is giving customers until Jan. 1, 2024 to cancel their current ammunition orders. Orders that are otherwise allowed to continue will be repriced to the new prices after that date. Nelson noted that ammunition and gunpowder companies like Vista Outdoor will be publishing new price lists by the end of the year.

The price of ammunition has been soaring for the past few years, with the initial rise beginning at the height of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the U.S. More recently, the administration of President Joe Biden has gone on a purchasing spree to send over American-made ammunition to Ukraine and Israel to aid in their ongoing conflicts against Russia and Hamas, respectively.

Vista Outdoor even pledged one million rounds of ammunition to Ukraine, an order to be completed by March 2024. This pledge was made following a call for support from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“Supporting the relief effort is a crucial element of the global response and we are proud to do our part,” said Vista Outdoor in a press release. “It underscores how critical the Second Amendment is in America and highlights the importance of the ability of American manufacturers to supply our allies with ammunition.”

Learn the latest news regarding gun and ammunition sales and manufacture in the U.S. at Guns.news.

Watch this clip from Next News Network as anchor Gary Franchi reports on the ammunition buying spree in the United States.

This video is from the News Clips channel on Brighteon.com.