Fuel prices see driver strikes spread across globe

LONDON, England (CNN) -- Rising fuel prices led to protests on opposite sides of the globe Friday, with fuel tanker drivers starting a four-day strike in Britain and truck drivers holding protests across South Korea.

It came at the end of a week that saw sometimes-violent protests over fuel in Spain, where blockades by truckers have caused food shortages in stores and markets and led to the death of one man.

Fishermen across Europe have also demonstrated over rising fuel prices in recent weeks.

The tanker drivers striking in Britain are demanding higher pay from their employer, Hoyer and Suckling, which has fuel distribution contracts with Shell. The 641 drivers are demanding more money, saying they want a share of Shell's profits from higher fuel prices.

The strike, which began after talks broke down between the drivers' union, Unite, and the company, affects only Shell gas stations, which make up 10 percent of the UK market.

A Unite spokesman said the union expected Shell stations to run out of petrol within 24 hours, though the government disputed that and urged motorists not to panic-buy. The government reported a 30 percent jump in fuel sales this week as the threat of a strike loomed.

The British government said it had contingency plans to reduce disruption, and drivers were filling up at Shell stations Friday morning with no apparent problems.

Another fear was that tanker drivers from other companies would refuse to cross picket lines in solidarity, threatening supply at other gas stations.

Shell drivers wanted a 13.2 percent increase in pay, but Hoyer and Suckling offered a 6.8 percent increase, the company said. Shell said it was not involved in the negotiations.

Business Secretary John Hutton said the government had been working with the industry to put in place contingency plans, and he advised motorists to buy only the fuel they need.

"We have been talking to the industry for a week," said a spokesman for the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. "The industry as a whole has been stocking up in those areas which are expected to be most affected by the strike."

The government is relying on the Emergency Plan for Fuel, which it drew up after major fuel protests in Britain in 2000, the business and enterprise department said.

The plan requires all of Britain's fuel companies to share information on how much fuel they have, how much they are selling, and where it is located. It enabled the government to recognize where shortages were and to respond to them, the department said.

The government said it had invoked the plan just once before -- for an oil terminal blockade in Grangemouth, Scotland, earlier this year.

Friday's strike in Britain coincided with protests by truck drivers in South Korea, where the drivers were holding rallies in port cities, protesting rising fuel costs, and demanding guaranteed minimum wages.

One truck driver from the port city of Busan told the Yonhap news agency that the price of fuel had gone up $3.94 a gallon since 2004. With drivers forced to pay for their fuel, they want more in pay.

"The more you drive, the more money you lose," the driver, who gave his name as Kim, told Yonhap.

Members of the Korea Cargo Transport Workers Union organized the demonstrations to complain that the government's latest policy package on rising crude oil prices failed to address their economic problems, Yonhap said.

The demonstration paralyzed many South Korean ports, including Busan, which handles 76 percent of South Korea's shipping, Yonhap said.

An unnamed official at a Busan shipping company told the agency that imports and exports at the port would be halted in three days if the action didn't end.

The South Korean military told Yonhap it had mobilized container trucks to ease distribution difficulties in the country.