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The word "strike" is not new in foreign countries, but no country has such a large-scale strike as France! Recently, French workers held the largest strike in 24 years, and the streets of Paris turned into a sea of fire! Sellers who have recently shipped to France will be terrified!
The French General Strike
According to Western media reports, on December 5, local time in France, at least more than 800,000 demonstrators marched in cities across France, including railway workers, teachers, hospital staff, and even police. People from all walks of life joined the strike, putting traffic in trouble across France.
There are different accounts of the number of people participating in the strike. The French Ministry of the Interior announced that 806,000 people across France participated in the demonstration; while the French Confederation of Labor claimed that more than 250 demonstrations were organized in various places, with 1.5 million protesters participating.
In this massive strike action, there are also violent conflicts such as arson, looting and smashing! In Paris alone, 65,000 people participated in the demonstration! At the strike site, there were pictures of destruction everywhere: a construction trailer was dumped and caught fire, masked young people set fires, looted high-end stores and threw fireworks at the police, and thick smoke was emitted from the sky.
Shops near the Place de la République in Paris were smashed, items were set on fire, and a raging fire broke out. The police then fired tear gas to disperse the crowd.
According to the latest data from the Paris police, as of 19:30 on the evening of the 5th, the police had arrested 90 people in the area and conducted more than 11,000 preventive searches.
The French strike is to oppose Macron's retirement system reform! According to the French government's reform plan, the retirement system that provides special benefits will be abolished and replaced by a unified retirement system! The reduction of retirement benefits has caused extreme dissatisfaction among the French people!
The French General Labor Union said they were ready to fight until Christmas to force Macron to abandon the pension reform plan. But Macron firmly stated that the pension reform plan is imperative and he will not compromise easily!
At present, this is likely to be a protracted war! The French don't care about the strike, but it's a pity for the cross-border sellers in China...
French traffic is facing paralysis
Since this strike was jointly initiated across industries and involved multiple fields such as railways, roads, and aviation, it put a heavy burden on French transportation!
On the railway side, train stations were empty on the day the strike began! About nine out of 10 high-speed TGV trains were cancelled. French railway operator SNCF added that 70% of regional trains were cancelled on Friday.
SNCF said shortly afterwards that services would remain "disrupted" on the second day of the strike, with Eurostar services to the UK and Thalys services to Northern Europe also being "severely disrupted".
According to current data , 90% of high-speed trains (TGV) and 80% of regional express trains (TER) have been cancelled, and 10 subway lines in Paris have been closed. During this strike, the strike rate of French railway companies averaged 55.6%, the highest level since 2007, and the strike rate of railway drivers reached 85.7%.
At the airport, most flight notifications at Paris Orly Airport are shown as "cancelled" because the civil aviation authority announced that 20% of flights have been grounded. Air France also announced that it would cut 30% of domestic flights and 15% of short-haul international routes.
On the highway, many roads along the march have been blocked. The Paris Public Transport Company Union voted to extend the strike until at least the 9th. During this period, the Paris subway, express train, buses, and trams will be disrupted. The union will decide on the next action on the 9th.
In view of the current traffic situation in France, sellers who are shipping to France recently should be prepared for delays. In addition, we would like to remind our partners who have overseas warehouses in France to pay attention to the notifications of local logistics companies and make contingency plans!
France suffered man-made disasters, while China and the United States suffered natural disasters
There are too many uncontrollable factors in peak season logistics, in addition to man-made disasters, there are also natural disasters! Recently, Typhoon Noru is approaching the Chinese sea area, and the cold front has caused a sharp increase in the pressure on China's air and sea transportation!
In terms of air transport, due to the combined influence of cold air and the outer circulation of Typhoon "Northern Crown", all flights between Shekou and Wai Lingding and Dong'ao were suspended on December 5.
In terms of shipping, due to gusts of up to level 9 to 10 on the southeast coast, Ningbo Port was closed for more than 30 hours this week, and some ships had to postpone their departure!
The meteorological department also reminded that water operations and passing ships in relevant waters should return to port to avoid the wind to prevent ships from breaking anchor, running aground and colliding. Many freight forwarders have also issued delay notices.
While China was hit by a typhoon, the United States was also not able to stay out of it and faced a severe snowstorm!
In recent days, large areas of the United States have continued to be hit by snowstorms, affecting from California to the Midwestern states and the East Coast, seriously hindering land and air transportation, and nearly 4,000 flights have been canceled or delayed.
The National Weather Service of the United States pointed out that the snowstorm is currently moving eastward. Parts of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut have been listed as snowstorm monitoring areas since the morning of the 1st, and 15 cm to 30 cm of snow is expected. New York City Emergency Management Commissioner Chris Will reminded the public that traffic is likely to be chaotic in the next few days.
The blizzard has killed two children, left one missing, and crashed a small passenger plane carrying nine people, leaving no one alive! The cause of the crash is still under investigation, but it is believed to be related to bad weather. At the time of the incident, a winter storm warning was in effect, with heavy snow and wind speeds of up to 40 miles per hour (about 17.8 meters per second).
Therefore, shipping companies that are transporting goods to North America in the near future need to protect their own safety; sellers shipping goods to the United States also need to pay attention to the movement of goods at all times!
During the peak season, logistics safety is of vital importance. Faced with some uncontrollable factors, sellers need to make several alternative plans to prevent unknown risks to the greatest extent!
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