Container shipping companies Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd said on Wednesday that heavy storms and snowfall were disrupting cargo flows across Europe, and that some logistics terminals were shut due to the bad weather.
Maersk said it saw disruptions in south-west and western Europe, which in turn also affected deliveries to and from the northern parts of the continent.
Portugal and Spain were among countries affected by severe weather warnings on Wednesday, while Italy on Monday declared a state of emergency for its southern regions battered by a violent storm last week that pushed water inland.
Maersk said there was no timeline currently available for a resumption of affected services.
"The severe conditions are causing significant industry-wide disruptions, with vessels sheltering and terminals having to stop operations or working with reduced productivity," Maersk wrote in an advisory sent to customers.
A Maersk spokesperson said the terminal closures affected ports along the western coasts of Spain and Morocco, extending up through the Bay of Biscay to Britain.
"This situation is affecting the entire industry, and due to the severity and uncertainty of the conditions, we expect delays and closures to continue to impact vessels and terminals across the board," it said in the advisory.
Germany's Hapag-Lloyd said in an emailed comment that the company was experiencing "significant reductions" due to the weather.
Rival shipping group CMA CGM last week said one of its ships had lost 58 containers at sea after facing unexpectedly strong weather conditions off Malta, and that some additional containers were damaged on the vessel deck.
(Reuters)