Belgian trains, schools, supermarkets and airports ground to a halt on Wednesday as the country’s main trade unions joined forces to call for higher wages and a cap on energy prices.
The strike was largely followed at the country’s three maritime ports. Schools, nurseries and post offices were also affected. Large retailers such as Carrefour, Delhaize and Lidl were mostly closed.
Most train and public urban traffic was reduced to a minimum. Local media reported light traffic on roads as people stayed at home during the strike, the third in four months.
Brussels airport had pre-emptively cancelled 60 per cent of flights. Local media reported that planned flights were able to operate normally.
In Brussels, the capital city hosting most of the European Union institutions, only one metro line was in service, with buses and tramways also disrupted.
Staff in about two thirds of hospitals in the French-speaking Wallonia region and Brussels joined the fray, with non-urgent appointments and operations postponed, the CSC union said.
Inflation has hit its highest point in the country of 11.5 million since 1975, at 12.27 per cent in October. This has been in large part caused by high energy costs triggered by the war in Ukraine, and Europe’s brutal decoupling from Russian pipeline gas.
The government has announced a support package of €135 ($135) in aid for gas and €61 for electricity from November to March.
But people are increasingly worried about end of the month bills and at the same time, energy companies’ profits are soaring, trade union representative Yves Helendorff of the National Centre of Employees told local TV.
“The government is not going to get everything it could to help people and workers overcome this crisis,” he said.
In Brussels, a simulation for a new electricity and heating subscription for a two-person flat indicated a cost of more than €250 a month on Tuesday.
Unions are insistent that workers have to be shielded from the impact of the price hikes that leave many on the edge of poverty.
“Prices of electricity, gas, food have gone through the roof over the past year. Because of the war but also because companies seized the opportunity to increase profits even more,” said Christian Democrat trade union ACV. “In contrast, wages are not allowed to increase for years … This has to stop. We need a price cap on gas and electricity.”
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo has called on the European Union to cap gas prices but disagreements among EU countries over the technical implications of such a cap have delayed decision making.
The country’s four biggest banks — ING Belgique, BNPP Fortis, Belfius and KBC — expect the Belgian economy to enter a recession this winter. This would be the third time in 20 years that Belgium has suffered a recession, according to Belgian daily Le Soir.
A country is generally thought to be in a recession when its economy contracts two quarters in a row. The four banks anticipate a contraction of 0,4 per cent in the fourth quarter after a contraction of 0.1 per cent in the third quarter.
Belgium has set up a system of wage indexation guaranteeing that if the cost of living goes up, salaries, pensions and benefits also increase.
But unions have been arguing that the next indexation — which will not take place before January for hundreds thousands of workers — does not take into account higher fuel prices specifically, so there is always a loss in purchasing power.
Agencies contributed to this report
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The biog
Job: Fitness entrepreneur, body-builder and trainer
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite quote: We must become the change we want to see, by Mahatma Gandhi.
Favourite car: Lamborghini
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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London Spirit: Kieron Pollard, Riley Meredith
Welsh Fire: Adam Zampa, David Miller, Naseem Shah
Manchester Originals: Andre Russell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Sean Abbott
Northern Superchargers: Dwayne Bravo, Wahab Riaz
Oval Invincibles: Sunil Narine, Rilee Rossouw
Trent Rockets: Colin Munro
Birmingham Phoenix: Matthew Wade, Kane Richardson
Southern Brave: Quinton de Kock
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Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rahul, Vijay, Pujara, Rahane (vc), Karun, Karthik (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep, Pandya, Ishant, Shami, Umesh, Bumrah, Thakur
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FA Cup fifth round
Chelsea v Manchester United, Monday, 11.30pm (UAE), BeIN Sports
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Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
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"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
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In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
