Employers associations in the Balearics are concerned that action being taken by some hauliers in Spain will lead to a blockade of ports.
This would be a measure to add pressure on the Spanish government to check the rise in the price of diesel. Above all, this is the demand of the Platform for the Defence of the Goods Transport Sector, which wants taxes on the sale of diesel to be eliminated.
Were there to be a blockade, Barcelona would be the first to be affected, or so associations in the Balearics fear. This would have "maximum" publicity and repercussions for the islands.
Contingencies have been taken. The Balearic Freight Transport Association says that over the weekend there was an increase in the number of ferries serving the Balearics. The distributors in the Balearics say that they currently have at least twenty days stock to guarantee all supplies in the event of there being any issue with shipping.
While the associations in the Balearics are not supporting the strike, they are sympathetic. Ezequiel Horrach of the freight association says that measures to mitigate the increase in diesel prices are urgent. At the same time, he stresses, measures to prevent the action having an impact on the movement of goods to the Balearics are equally urgent.
The Balearic Ports Authority says that there are at present no problems with the arrival of goods at Palma and other ports. Nor is it aware of any issue at ports on the mainland.
Where there are problems with supplies, these have nothing to do with the hauliers' action. They are because of a shortage of some raw materials, partly a consequence of the war in Ukraine.