SKorea ports returning to normal after strike ends
Posted: 20 June 2008 1450 hrs

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SEOUL: South Korean ports and cargo terminals were returning to normal Friday after container truck drivers called off their week-long strike over rising fuel prices, officials said.

Truck movements were stepping up quickly at ports hard hit by the stoppage, which began when some 13,500 unionised truckers walked off the job one week ago.

"Cargo traffic is quickly returning to normal today with many drivers coming back," Lim Yeon-Taek, a spokesman for the Ministry of Land, Transportation and Maritime Affairs, told AFP.

The breakthrough came after truckers and an association of container transport firms reached an agreement on Thursday to raise drivers' fees by 19 percent.

The Korea Cargo Workers Union had urged the government and major logistics firms to take steps to ease the burden that truckers are facing from soaring diesel prices.

Separate agreements were reached between truckers and major clients including LG Chem, POSCO and Glovis, the logistics arm of the country's top carmaker Hyundai Motor.

Truck drivers are still holding negotiations with some other companies, Lim said.

The government has promised to introduce standardised freight rates from next year. It has also announced a 100-billion-won (97-million-US-dollar) package to modernise the sector and improve truckers' welfare.

The government will buy some trucks to cut oversupply and convert others to natural gas, among other steps.

The ministry said most construction site drivers have also returned to work after ending their separate strike against high fuel prices.

The container truckers' strike had hit major ports and inland cargo terminals, where containers had been stacking up. Local firms had faced problems receiving raw materials and exporting finished goods.

The strike had intensified pressure on the government of President Lee Myung-Bak, who is grappling with a month-long series of street protests against a decision to resume US beef imports.

The former business CEO had urged both truckers and companies to make concessions and warned a prolonged strike would "deal a serious blow to our economy". - AFP/ac