Problems for China, cars "block" the ports of Europe

Thousands of imported vehicles are currently in several European seaports, many of them imported from China.

Some car manufacturers have rented large areas in the ports due to the large number of car imports for which they have no buyers. Logistics companies also rent additional parking spaces outside the port.

"This situation is currently affecting all European ports where large volumes of vehicles arrive" said for "Automobilwoche", the spokesperson of the Belgian port of Antwerp, Gert Ix.

The Port Authority did not provide concrete figures, but there are currently more vehicles than in 2020 and 2021 combined.

The problem is not just that there are no customers. Trucks for transporting cars are also missing and there are very few drivers.

Weak sales of new (electric) cars in Europe continue to be the biggest culprit for this chaos. Some car companies' plan to sell vehicles directly to customers, rather than dealers, is also contributing to port congestion.