A lengthy shutdown could raise prices on goods around the country and potentially cause shortages and price increases at big and small retailers alike.

With a strike deadline looming, the group representing East and Gulf Coast ports is asking a federal agency to make the Longshoremen’s union come to the bargaining table to negotiate a new contract. The U.

U.S. ports from Maine to Texas could shut down if a union representing about 45,000 dockworkers carries through with a threatened strike early Tuesday.