Ships stranded at Bangladesh port

Ships stranded at Bangladesh port

CHITTAGONG, Bangladesh (Reuters): A strike at Bangladesh's main Chittagong port has left some 65 ships carrying 1.3 million tons of cargo stranded, officials said on Friday.

The 36-hour strike, which kicked off early on Thursday, is over plans by a U.S. company to build a private container terminal.

The strike, involving about 20,000 workers, has halted cargo handling and deliveries.

The port, the nation's main cargo handling center, was also shut for 24 hours last Monday after industrial action was taken against the proposed private terminal. "We expect to resume full operations by Saturday morning," said Asanul Kabir, the port's terminal manager.

The government agreed in principle in 1997 to allow Stevedoring Services of America (SSA) to build a USS$500 million private terminal to speed up handling of containers at Chittagong.