Strikes stop public transportation in Greece, Belgium

Thousands of people marched in a 24-hour strike in Athens that started yesterday. Almost simultaneously in Belgium, trade unions staged a walkout. In both countries, people are protesting soaring inflation. The annualized inflation rate hit 10.7 percent last month in the 19 countries that use the euro. Brief clashes broke out in Greece, with protesters trading Molotov cocktails for tear gas with the police in Athens and Thessaloniki. One officer was injured and ten people were arrested, the police said. The main trade unions are calling for wage increases to help people cope with inflation. 

What are the strikes affecting? Both strikes are nationwide and disrupting transportation. In Greece, ferries that connect the country’s islands were stopped, state-run schools were shut down, and public hospitals were running with reduced staff. In Brussels, protests disrupted traffic across most of the city, and pickets in front of shops disrupted business. Britain’s largest nursing union said Wednesday that its members had also voted to strike but had not set a date. This would be the 106-year-old union’s first nationwide strike. 

Dig deeper: Listen to Nick Eicher’s interview with David Bahnsen on The World and Everything in It podcast about inflation, the Dow, and currency.