High petrol prices causing fury in different parts of globe; Finnish truckers still not in mass revolt

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“Operation Snail” jams highways in various parts of France. In Brussels, tear gas wafts and cars burn as fishermen and riot police clash violently. In Portugal, the country’s entire fishing fleet stays on shore as a form of protest.
      In Britain hundreds of motorcyclists ride side by side with truck and taxicab drivers in a slow convoy through the streets of Manchester. In India, schools are closed and flights cancelled because of demonstrations.
      In Malaysia, where petrol prices rose 41% overnight and diesel prices by as much as 67%, the opposition promises major protests that may shake the government.
     
These are just some examples of the recent days’ demonstrations in various parts of the world against the latest fuel price hikes. Last month the price of oil peaked at a crippling 135 dollars a barrel. Today’s figure remains a very painful 120 dollars.
      The price of crude oil has kept rising for several years now, but this year the development has been exponential. Reasons for this include the strong increase in demand in the Asian developing economies, such as China and India, and of course the ailing US dollar.
     
For truckers and others, the problems have been exacerbated by a greater than average spike in diesel prices, partly triggered by soaring demand as more and more motorists turn to diesel in search of better fuel consumption.
      The price increase has hit particularly hard fields that depend heavily on fuel, such as the transport industry and fishermen. Consumers will also suffer as the oil price rise undoubtedly passes on for example to the cost of petrol at the pumps and food in the shops.
     
In Finland transportation professionals are not going to set on a protest march just yet. The Transport Workers’ Union AKT is waiting for the green light to come from the employers’ side.
      The ball is in the Finnish Transport and Logistics’ court, for first and foremost expensive fuel complicates things for entrepreneurs. “If they decide to take action, then we will back them up”, says AKT chairman Timo Räty.
      The Finnish Transport and Logistics (SKAL), the umbrella organisation looking after the interests of the country’s road haulage companies, will consider necessary measures at its meeting on Saturday.
      “On Saturday we will get the view from the field. But it is difficult to imagine that a demonstration would change things much”, says SKAL managing director Iiro Lehtonen.
     
The government has limited means to deal with the situation. Rather, it is the customer contracts that are in a pivotal role.
      “Our means of leverage are to suspend transportation contracts and ask for more money.”
      According to Lehtonen, one stimulus could be to return the paid fuel tax retroactively from the beginning of the year.
      The repayment sum would be in the region of EUR 30 million.
      SKAL will meet with the industry and commerce interest groups as well as ministers dealing with road transportation issues on June 17th.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Increased popularity of diesel cars pushes up fuel price (28.5.2008)

Helsingin Sanomat